There are periods out in the fields around Brussels, periods presaging the great annual migrations, when the fields seem full of flocks. The birds mass expectantly, nervously. They start up in alarm and flap around disjointedly before settling again. And then there are periods, like the current one, when the fields are full of flocks for a different reason; the farmers have started harvesting their corn, and the fields are full of crows, geese, lapwings, pigeons and many other species, all gorging themselves on the grain left in the earth. These birds are less nervous. They don’t start up at the slightest sound and they settle much more rapidly. I suppose it could be argued that by stocking up in this way they are also presaging the migratory flows to come. As such, they add a wistful note to the landscape; autumn is well on the way.
Leave a Reply