Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes

When this rowdy crowd of what looked like black birds started to visit our garden, we thought they must be a kind of crow.

We knew they weren’t ravens, as their colouring was a bit different.

It was on the first visit that we noticed just how distinctive these birds are. Not as large as a raven, a shiny black body with a steel grey head and the most incredible blue eyes. I looked them up and discovered they were jackdaws.

They became regular visitors, enviously watching the smaller birds busy at the bird feeders. Over the next few days I watched as one of these strange birds gradually taught himself to land on the small containers. He looked up at me, and I swear he smiled, pleased at his accomplishment.

Before long, they all knew how to do it, and the feeders needed filling up a lot more often!

Cheekily, if the feeders are empty when they arrive, they all gather on the fence, calling loudly until the feeder is filled. I have to admit that I spend a lot of time watching them at the moment…

I did take a lot of photographs, but until I figure out how to get these old files on to the new computer, I am grateful for Pixabay.com.