The Third Ladybird Book of British Birds – #14 The Stonechat
I’m currently reading the third volume of the Ladybird Book of British Birds and their nests from the 1950s.
Times have changed, but little seems to have altered for Stonechats in the UK:
Stonechats still love “commons with plenty of gorse bushes, also heaths and waste ground generally.”
They still love perching on the top of bushes.
They still flick their wings and call with their distinctive sound of two stones being knocked together.
They’re one of my favourite birds to spend time with.
Their large eyes, strong legs and precision beaks enable them to hunt insects very efficiently. Despite their population regularly crashing when there are cold or snowy winters, they have always recovered to breed again.
They’re a simple joy.