Williamson's Weekly Nature Notes

He wished to relive the joys of schooldays when he had kept one as a pet but was now too busy with the daily commute to London.

I soon found a baby daw and my own schooldays came flooding back too as the bird screamed for bread and milk from dawn to dusk.

Mother took over matron duties while I was out at work in the local forests. But poor old Ken, who suffered continual pain from an amputated leg and had a daunting workload, found he would not be able to cope after all, so the by-now-fully-grown bird was set free.

It flew immediately to the nearest church tower 500 yards away and started gabbling its amazing story to all the other jackdaws hungry for news. I was pleased but surprised that the bird had so quickly abandoned its human adopters.

For full feature see West Sussex Gazette February 5