Close to the ground (3)
I believe the answer is:
low
'close to the ground' is the definition.
(low down and close to the ground)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for low that I've seen before include "Inferior; not loud" , "Deep sound made by cattle" , "Unimportant sort of owl" , "Not high or loud" , "Depressed; near the ground" .)