Jackdaw flock – evening return

 

Today was still, not a breath of wind, and as afternoon drew towards evening, a clear winter soundscape started to unfold.   My flock of jackdaws began to return with their sharp ‘jac, jac’, joined by a few crows cawing.  As dusk approached, the blackbirds chinked louder and louder, spooked by the evening shadows.  In the back field, a small flock of lapwings landed, ‘wheeup’-ing with their almost impossible, evocative calls.  The jackdaws and crows quietened, and the manic ‘chinking’ was replaced by rustling as the blackbirds settled.

A single ‘wheeup’ was accompanied by a sheep bleating.  Then a moment of quiet, and a mournful hooting of two owls began down in the copse.  Slowly, that died away with the last of the light.

Silent night – time to go home.