We are losing a bird that is the herald of spring to a suite of complex and not yet fully understood reasons
It began in the last week of April when a hawk flew across the garden and perched near the top of the big oak. There was a bit of party going on down below, but the bird stayed there for about half an hour and gave me plenty of time for a proper look. And it wasn’t a hawk at all. It was a cuckoo.
Easy mistake to make, especially because you are never expecting to see a cuckoo these days. The confusion is an ancient one: there’s an old country saying that demonstrates the ancient traditions of the bad