There’s been some talk of these recently & I was lucky to see a busy crowd of them @ Dudley Reserve sth of Newcastle last week; a treat, as it was my first sight since seeing one in similar region c. 20 odd yrs ago.
Where else could I possibly ‘publish’ the following blush-inducing
verse?
PIANO ENSEMBLE
The magpies on our windowsill
Are dear familiar birds
And listen when my husband plays
A song with lilting chords.
There’s one of them, Sir Walter by name,
Who loves the livelier tunes:
He fluffs his feathers into a ruff
As if about to croon.
Instead he drops a glistening plop
From modestly lowered bum
Then warbles off a bar or two,
A sort of magpie hum.
……
Sue Edgar
