As the sun begins to set a spectacular scene unfolds here at Lakenheath Fen; an eerie sight and sound, once experienced, never forgotten...
...And it’s all down to the thousands of rooks, crows and jackdaws that congregate to roost in our poplar woods. It starts off slowly, a few birds appearing quietly and dropping in to the trees, the first few scouts checking the area out. Then, before you know it, the sky is full of birds and noise in a scene slightly reminiscent of the film ‘The Birds’.
Every so often they’ll drop into the trees, silence descending, before the explosion of noise begins again, not settling fully until darkness has descended.
It’s a mesmerising sight, but it can often be difficult to identify what bird is what amongst the black mass in the sky! So, here’s a guide to the corvids (the family name for these birds) of the reserve:
We’ll begin with the clattering – the collective name for a group for jackdaws. The smallest of the corvid family is easily identified by it’s comparably small stature and ash-grey head.
Jackdaw (Nigel Blake rspb-images.com)
Jackdaws are very sociable birds often chattering amongst themselves, especially evident as they flock together before settling for the night. Listen out for their cackling calls to pick them out from the congregation.
Next, on to the parliament of rooks. Often confused with crows due to their similar size, they can told apart by the pale, bone coloured base around the bill and feathers that cover the tops of their legs (though admittedly this may be a little difficult to see in flight!).
Rook (Mike Langman rpsb-images.com)
Their call is a very distinctive nasal and hoarse sound, possibly best described as a ‘graah’ sounding noise, which can be considerably loud during the nesting season.
So why a parliament? Their collective lifestyle leads to this name alongside historical records of strange occurrences of court like circles of rooks surrounding other rooks from the group, in an almost trial like way.
And to finish, a murder of crows! There are many theories as to why a group of crows is called a murder, yet no definite one. Perhaps due to their use in literature as a sign of evil or danger, their agitated calls ‘crying murder’ or maybe even their scavenger tendencies.
Crow (Andy Hay rspb-images.com)
Conceivably the plainest of the corvids it can be told apart by it’s plain black plumage, but don’t be deceived by simplicity – they are very clever birds, as are all the members of the corvid family.
Their call is somewhat similar to a rook, though a slightly shorter ‘krah’ sound and less insistent in tone.
A good way to look at the different calls amongst the roost is that the rooks form the bass line, crows perform the mid range chords and jackdaws the high pitched vocals.
Whilst this has very much been a beginner’s guide to corvids and there are more in depth differences between the species, it’s a great place to start from.
It all adds up to a mesmerising experience and one that I can’t recommend highly enough, so come on down to visit us and experience a clattering, a parliament and murder for yourself.
A sky full of corvids (David White)