Wondering what's got our feathered friends so chirpy?
Well, it may just be because they're heading for a massive avian slumber party in Ardamine Woods - one of Courtown's last remaining protected preserves and the place these crows call home.
Gathering in their hundreds in this special little woodland, they arrive just before dusk clucking, shuffling and squawking above the trees in preparation for their night-time roost.
Ardamine Woods is a wooded 6 acre parcel with a stream running through it, some small natural ponds and a rugged trail leading out to the headland. Sandwiched as it is between several housing developments accessibility is challenging, but it is still regularly used by local families as an outdoor amenity. Kids especially enjoy its wildness. Local mum Claudia Peakins and her daughter Grace adore it. Grace tells us she and her friends love to play there:
"We like it better than the playground. We can swing from trees, build dens, play games, collect leaves and twigs while mum and dad walk the dog. Every year we love finding tadpoles and watching them grow bigger."
Thankfully the Woods are zoned as a protected natural amenity. It's important to preserve them because the woodland protects the stream corridor and serves as an excellent wildlife habitat especially for resident and migratory birds.
And clearly it's also equally important to preserve because according to Grace and her friends they're clearly "better than any playground".
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