The chough had once vanished from England, but since 2002 there has been a growing colony of these fascinating birds in Cornwall
The dawn chorus is deafening in my neck of the woods at the moment. The blackbirds are like loquacious honey-voiced DJs and the thrush is gloriously strident, but I’ve never heard two birds converse quite like a pair of choughs. Perhaps this is because these charismatic coastal-dwelling crows, with curved blood-red beaks, pair for life – although I’ve seen plenty of long-married human couples with far less conversation.
Choughs vanished from England – eradicated by persecution and habitat loss – in the early 1970s but in 2001 a breeding pair unexpectedly flew in from Ireland and recolonised their old stronghold of Cornwall. This year, they are thriving, with a record 12 breeding pairs in the county, up from seven last summer.
Continue reading…
Source: Guardian Environment