When I came downstairs to the kitchen this morning the sun was big and bright yellow, casting a warm glow over fallen leaves in shades of Autumnal golds and oranges. I opened the back door to let Zak (our scruffy but adorable mutt) out and noticed the birds on the roof of the house opposite. Nothing unusual about that, I hear you say. Well no. Except that the birds in question are in fact Peacocks!
Surprised? I'm not. This is a common sight here. Until we moved here I thought peacocks lived on farms or in parks. But we have five peacocks that wonder down our road on an almost daily basis. Well actually one peacock, one peahen and three immature males. I am not sure what a young peacock is called, probably just a chick.Many of our neighbours feed these majestic, rather pompous looking creatures. In fact the mature cock has a name. George, which I think is fitting as he is rather regal.
Another bird we were excited to see when we moved into our house, was an eagle owl. Yes, an eagle owl, perched on a telegraph pole just yards from our kitchen window. Philip and I were amazed and rushed for the binoculars. We focused on the bird and were watching it for at least ten minutes before we realised.... it is made of plastic! The owl is supposed to be a deterrent to other birds. The telephone company perched him there because the starlings were causing problems on the wires. Oh boy! did we feel silly! Still, we laughed and when we tell our family and friends the story they laugh too, at us probably.
