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The company of Hawfinches

What is the collective noun for Hawfinches? An internet search yields nothing specific, but does give ‘charm’, ‘trembling’ and ‘company’ as collective nouns for finches.

Charm, though, is usually associated with Goldfinches, while trembling doesn’t sound right for the stolid Hawfinch. And company? These are furtive birds, glimpsed rarely at the top of distant trees, usually as individuals or in small groups. Greenfinches might form a company, but Hawfinches?

Well, the answer since October 2017 is yes. From mid-month the UK’s small population of Hawfinches was swollen by an unprecedented influx of birds pushed out of central Europe by poor seed yields. They are still present, with significant concentrations in the Arun valley and other parts of Sussex where their favoured hornbeams and yews occur.

Many of the initial Arun valley sightings related to a flock in the Rewell area which at times numbered up to 60 birds. Smaller numbers – individuals or small parties - were seen nearby, notably in Arundel Park and by the Millstream, and further afield at locations including Pulborough Brooks.

The last few days have seen a jump in the number of birds in the vicinity of Mill Road and the Millstream in Arundel, with 26 present in two mobile and animated flocks yesterday morning. Possibly moving round to search for food or avoid the attentions of a Peregrine, or maybe preparing for the return journey. There were fewer today - just nine - but still enough to form a company.

Some birds stick in the mind because of the circumstances in which they were seen, Hawfinch one of them. In Derbyshire for my father’s funeral on March 21, 1987, my notebook records, “Eyam, 8.15: out of window in front room a male Hawfinch in Colley’s Wood; first in high trees at top, then in old orchard trees, then under them on the grass.”

Not a company, then, but no doubt one of the eight I’d seen a short way down the valley when visiting a week before. And a record that still resonates. The sight of a Hawfinch sometimes still recalls that day, with its cold west wind and occasional hint of snow.

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