The Jackdaws of Eastbourne UK

A charismatic little black bird  common in Europe, Western Jackdaws are intelligent little crows with seductive eyes. They are capable of making eye contact with people, precisely reading our body language, and often leading us to think they possess extrasensory perception.

A social bird, usually seen in pairs or small groups, these quick witted animals will take advantage of the generous public at local cafés. Especially in the UK, where birds are largely revered. At Holywell Café in Eastbourne, East Sussex, they will skillfully pilfer a french fry or the left over milk (as seen in the image below) from an unaware tourist. 

This bird is very resourceful and, in some regions, they will exploit bird colonies, feeding intensely on their eggs. Jackdaws are omnivorous, but do not lean to being more carnivorous, as is the case with most other crows. One particular study proved that the majority of diet is plant based. Even so, some individuals do become specialised at taking eggs from both large and small birds. There are instances of this capable corvid causing heavy egg losses at heronries. 

   

Jackdaws collecting fur to line their nest

(Above) pulling hair from a relaxing pony - a symbiosis providing the bird with nest material while the horse is relieved of its thick winter coat.

 

A visit to a nearby bowling green pays dividends when a generous benefactor, in the form of a  gentleman, shares his lunch. 

Many old medieval churches across Europe accommodate a colony of Jackdaws in their spires and chimneys. However, the natural Jackdaw habitat is not a medieval building, but rather, a precipitous rock face like this, part of the 14 mile long range of white chalk cliffs along the southeast coast of England.

Not far away from this Jackdaw colony in Birling Gap, is the seaside town of Eastbourne, home to another colony. The latter colony is very close to the human populous and largely feeds in and around the town, although resident in the chalk cliffs nearby.   

 

The Jackdaw Corvus monedula was classified by Carl Linnaeus in the 18th century, known then for its habit of picking up bright objects, particularly coins (monedula drawn from the Latin Moneta: money).

Birds were taught to fly into open windows to steal shiny objects, in the hope that they might bring back jewellery. Even in modern times, Italian criminals have trained them to snatch cash notes from the hands of customers at external banking machines.

Jackdaws are not globally threatened, and are abundant through most of their range, however, in recent decades, populations are deceasing in some European countries.