Roost at Sunset

by Alex White

As the sun sets the air is filled by the chattering and calling of the incoming Rooks.

Their roost is opposite my house and as the daylight fades and the sky turns orange the rooks that have spent the day out on local farmland return to the small copse to settle for the night.

There is plenty of jostling for space and the odd squabble. Occasionally, a passing Red Kite or loud noise will send them all up in to the air, where they will circle the tree tops a few times before deciding it is safe to settle again.

The rook (Corvus frugilegus) has a variety of ways to communicate with its fellow rooks, from vocal sounds to body gestures, this is all vital to the ‘parliament’ of rooks survival.

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© Alex White 2019