Rookery Rooks Homepages : merlintherook.webs.com

A tizzy over Dizzy   (22.5.11)

A near disaster, as we set off round the garden with the dogs this morning Dizzy took off and flew over the wall onto a branch just by the ditch, not that high but too high to reach. Then hew flew onto the electricity wires, we spent ages calling and waving a dead mouse at him. Eventually he took off and flew into the back field, we rushed round there  thinking he would have landed on the grass, but there was nothing to be seen. We searched all round the field, searched all round nomansland, squashed nettles here there and everywhere and got stung to no avail. Josh played his laugh back to him on the mobile phone, but with the wind being so strong, we were doubtful if he would hear it. Josh went and got a band amplifier and rigged it up out the back, and played it at full volume, he answered!  He was in an elderberry back near the wall again, but when we tried to cross the ditch to reach him he flew back into the garden and landed in the yew trees by the pond. Josh climbed the tree he was in and attempted to catch him in the rook net, he flew across the garden to a sycamore near the stone arch. Josh went up a ladder and managed to get him in the rook net, but he got away and flew round towards the nuttery. I was worried he could fly over the road if we weren't careful, so we took the dogs for a walk in the wood and considered further plans of action, I concluded that getting him to do what he was used to would work, ie getting him to perch on something which could be lowered down so he could come onto my hand.  We set forth with a garden hoe, and found he had moved to one of the plum trees by the nuttery, and to a much lower branch.  I raised the hoe, and was able to coax him onto it, lower it, and transfer him to my hand, which I think he was just as relieved about as we were! And all of this only took us about 3 hours!  1 more rook, so now there are 7

Today is Rook Sunday and at present the bird population down here on the ground at The Rookery is 6 rooks, 2 crows, and of course 1 kookaburra!

 The six rooks are all from our rookery and are doing well, the two crows have come from M in Lincolnshire as she is full to bursting, and the intention is that they will be released when Terry who has feather damage, caused deliberately when he was put in a Larsen trap, can fly again. They are both pretty wild, and quite put out with being moved from their comfortable home to a strange new aviary , but hopefully they will settle down happily until it's time for them to take to the skies again.

 The rooks are all feeding well and getting on fine with Dizzy, who seems to be quite taken with them!

(see photo album - branchie season 2011 and new video - Bedlam)

Maybe Merlins nest blew down in the gales of March 31st!

It was a flimsy structure about half the size of all the other nests, very high in the tree and therefore susceptible to wind damage.

New building has commenced in a safer spot, but they've been a bit half-hearted about it & we don't hold out much hope. (Well, mum doesnt but they dont seem to be doing too badly - josh).

On a more positive note, our first pair of swallows arrived back from Africa yesterday 2nd of  april & are merrily flitting around the stable planning their nesting spot for this year.

Below is a video of Maybe Merlin trying to put twigs back in the silly old, high up nest site!

Maybe Merlins Nest!

A Rather small nest has gone up in exactly the spot which maybe merlin and wife chose last year.

There has been a lot of squabbling and dismantling of twigs by neighbours, but the resident pair have now settled for the nest "as is" and seem to have moved on to the egg laying stage, with the male bird bringing food for the sitting hen.

Could this be our boy and his chosen one?

Definitely maybe!

(below is a small video clip of maybe merlin visiting the nest, giving some food to the hen and then flying away again)

Below is a photo of maybe merlin exiting the nest after feeding the hen...

Mystic passes beyond

Mystic was seen by the vet shortly before he died, and he could find nothing physically wrong with his wings so he must have had some brain damage, possibly quite severe as when he got down on the floor he couldn't manage to hop back up to the sofa, and when in his cage couldn't get from perch to perch, or even turn round on the perch he was on. His attempts at bathing were always feeble, standing in a bowl as if he wanted to get wet but didn't really know how, which was why I had taken to giving a splash in the kitchen sink. On the day he died, I had put him back on the sofa after bathing when he seemed to sort of collapse, he was gasping and went all pale inside the mouth, I wrapped him in a towel and tried to revive him, but he just went.

God Speed you black Emperor, fly far, fly free, fly forever.

Reigny goes flyabout:

Reigny got away when I was tring to bring her in from the aviary, and has been residing in the rookery ever since. She comes to me every day for cheese and other treats, but does'nt seem desperately hungry, so is definitely finding her own food too.

Despite the gathering of wild rooks which happens every morning now between 5 and 9 am, she is staying put when they leave. 

Cloud is anxious to join her, and as her adult plumage is improving all the time we will release her very soon (unless Reigny decides to come back and live in the house!)

The duckling are turning into ducks & we have a new "rook" hen, who is called Queen Mab!

The rookling from Em is called cloud! (another aspect of the valkyrie Mist)

and Reigny is actually feeding him (her) herself! Quite an achievement for an under one year old, she will actually put bits of food into clouds mouth rather than eat them herself.

Poor Mystic crow is doing well, we have even had a couple of CAWS out of him, only a very few as yet. Some feathers look like they are starting to grow back, just two little stripes down his chest as yet but hopefully they will all grow back soon.

The cloud, mist and rain associations also have connexions with merlins magic and his magic mists, some of the magic is featured in this story Merlin's Prophecy but it all gets a bit weird and hard to follow!

Jo has also hatched some call duck ducklings who have three hen mothers and a cockerel father!

here's a video of them.....

Josh

Well, Inkpen has flown away! He got out when the window was open, flew into some trees. 

He stayed around the house for a couple of days, cawing but, as per normal, not deigning to come out of the trees he was cawing at us from! Then he just went, possibly with a small group of Jackdaws.

The rooks arent in the rookery at present, but some of them visit daily, they are away probably at a parliament nearby so that will be where he's gone. He's very lucky, being hardly accustomed to humans at all he has got the best return to nature he could have got, he was really more Reigny's rook than he was ours!

Reigny is still with us, she is still Jo's little girl and doing very well.

And we have a new arrival called Mystic Crow!

Poor thing, Jo found him in the wood and he was in shock and all his chest feathers had been plucked, we think by a sparrowhawk!

He looks very sorry for himself but he perches and feeds very well, he's got very strong claws and beak, being a crow. He hasnt found his voice yet but I'm sure he will one day soon. The name was inspired by the Valkyrie Mist who was an aspect of morgan le fay in the arthurian legend; story here - Valkyrie Mist

Mum is off to kings lynn this morning to meet Em from Lincs. rook rescue who has a tiny rook that needs looking after so there's another new arrival on the way!

Maybe Merlin

In mid April a pair of rooks started trying to build a nest, needless to say all the other nests were already filled with nestlings!

Their site of choice was not the best being at the very top of a poplar tree above the other nests in that particular clump of trees, and daily their twigs were either blown away or removed by other birds, who were quite hostile.

Eventually they put in a magnificent effort with both birds fetching twigs all day, until by the evening the hen bird was able to sit in the nest.

Could this be Merlin and partner?

As he only left on March 17 he would not have had the opportunity for the long courtship I have read rooks and jackdaws normally have, which would explain the late building. Prior to his departure and before all the rooks had returned full time to the rookery I know that he was visited by a solitary rook on several occasions.

Whilst they were building Josh and I went out together and did a lot of calling, one bird left the nest site, and came gradually down to the lowest branches before returning to its mate, the strongest indication we have had that it may be Merlin.

 So far as I could make out, chicks did eventually hatch, as I observed some feeding, but I don't believe they survived, as the feeding became more and more sporadic. The male's efforts at bringing food were probably too irregular, another indication that it could be Merlin as he would probably find it quite a challenge to collect enough to feed a family. Hopefully they'll have better luck next year!

Reigny & Inkpen

"New rooks raised with silver spoon!"

Reigny came to us on 11th May and Inkpen,

 on the 24th of May. Reigny is named after the village of Newton Reigny in the lake district which is on the site of the famous caledonian forest which has now dissapeared. This is where Merlin fled to in his last days of madness, you can read the story here The Madness of King Merlin . And Inkpen is named after the village of Inkpen which has Arthurian connexions, more (scant) info at InkpenVillage . 

They have become the best of friends and do everything together.

They love their capacious new cage, known as "Corvid Towers", and if anything happens to frighten them, they rush to go back in, or hide underneath it!

They can now both help themselves to food in their bowl, but still clamour for spoon feeding with the tiny silver coffee spoon they have come to love so much!

Happy Rook Sunday everyone!

Since Greenwing we have had two more Branchies, one died last night, it was very very small and wouldnt feed and could not perch.

Another, has been with us since tuesday and is looking ok, altho' it won't gape for food yet so food is still having to be put in its mouth, it seems to be perching and preening ok tho.