rooks of this colony nest on the roof of the foundry, on the chimneys behind the foundry, on the long sheds where the old fittings are still kept. their feathers, otherwise black, take a brass gleam where the smoke has touched them. an old bird can look almost gilt in profile.
the call is a low, considered krra, with one shorter note after. in winter the colony quietens; in autumn it conducts a long argument with itself, mostly above the tower and along the road south. it has been heard from inside the kitchen, faintly.
they will accept a small offering of bread on the parapet and they remember faces. one bird, identifiable by a missing toe on the left foot, has been recorded in the same yard across four winters.
— left a coin on the wall. it was gone within the hour. — w., the foundry roof.