Throughout the year, but especially now in the breeding season, one of the common sights and sounds in and around Tisbury is the jackdaw - they like to breed in small towns and villages. This is our smallest member of the crow family, distinguished from the others by the silver-grey plumage around the back of its head and this, and the adult’s pale eyes, makes it easy to identify. It has a slightly stocky look and seems to strut somewhat when it walks. It will take over the nests of other birds or use holes in trees and buildings. They sometimes become a nuisance by trying to form a nesting platform in a chimney by dropping lots of twigs down it. Indeed, piles of twigs scattered on the pavement in the High Street or on the station platform probably result from jackdaws’ nest building above. Like all the crows, jackdaws are inquisitive and intelligent birds, good at problem solving and captive birds can easily be taught to do tricks. They are quite sociable and pairs, which mate for life, are often seen sitting next to each other preening. These pairs may keep close contact with each other while flying and feeding in large winter flocks. They often nest in colonies such as on Old Wardour Castle and feed in nearby fields in raucous, mixed flocks with rooks. They can be seen flying acrobatically in groups repeatedly making their hard “tchack” call from which their name may be derived. Jackdaws have a varied diet including insects and invertebrates, worms, seeds, fruit, nestlings, carrion, and scraps. They will also visit gardens to collect food. Common throughout the British Isles but for the highlands and Western Isles the jackdaw population has been rising since the 1970’s. This success may be based on its ability to exploit a variety of habitats, its varied diet, and its tolerance of man. They certainly seem happy in and around Tisbury. *R H Barham, The Jackdaw of Rheims Many are the joys of cat ownership - the comforting furry purry warmth, the welcoming miaow. The changing of the litter tray. The lugging home the crates of food. But there can be the downside of predation. The presentation of voles, woodmice, shrews- or even larger mammals such as rabbits and squirrels - and birds of different sizes and volume of plumage. Most cat owners feel pretty bad about this, but up to now there seemed to be little that could be done to prevent it. The verdict was, 'it's their natural instinct.' But at last, help may be at hand. The Guardian has publicised research which has identified things owners of predatory cats (not all are) can do to minimise this habit. The most effective were found to be: Play with the cat for 5-10 minutes a day using something like the DaBird fishing rod toy from Pets at Home
Put a brightly-coloured, flashy 'ruff' collar on the cat with a noisy bell (but a bell alone isn't any good)
Over a couple of months, in at least one case this has achieved a substantial and welcome reduction in predation. And cat owners may also like to know that the plastic food pouches can now be recycled - in aid of the Wiltshire Air Ambulance - via this website. |
Photo: Avocets (Izzy Fry)
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