Peacocks take mysterious fancy to Norfolk market town

Mystery surrounds the appearance of a large number of peacocks that seem to have become rather taken with a Norfolk town.

Phillip Eglen spotted seven birds which stayed in his Dereham garden for several hours last week.

He said he had occasionally seen one or two, but the large number was a surprise and his photo prompted others to tell of similar recent visits.

It is not known whether they have escaped or are on an adventure.

No-one has yet come forward to claim the group - known as an "ostentation" - of peacocks.

But many in the town posted their own photographs including one of eight perched on top of a roof.

Mr Eglen, who has lived on a housing development in Dereham for 12 years, sat and watched the group "following the sun around" in his garden for about three hours.

"I felt like I was being invaded; half of them were balanced on the fence in an almost intimidating manner - like the opening of Alfred Hitchcock's film The Birds," he joked.

"They were here for so long I was starting to wonder whether I was now the owner of an ostentation and would have to start searching for peacock food online."

When the group left, they did not go far and several other people added their pictures of the peafowl to the local Facebook group post.

The Thetford-based British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) said on its website that the most commonly-kept peacocks were Indian peafowl - "familiar as an ornamental species, often associated with stately homes, but the free-flying nature and tendency to wander some distance mean that individuals can turn up elsewhere".

Nick Moran, from the BTO, said: "It is hard for observers to know whether a particular individual or group of peafowl are self-sufficient and/or breeding in a 'wild' state - or are just wide-ranging birds from a nearby collection or other 'captive' source.

"Anecdotally, there has been an increase in releases of captive birds since the onset of avian influenza - it's possible that people are unwilling or unable to meet the biosecurity measures and are releasing their birds instead."

Mr Eglen said since posting his photographs, the peacocks had become the talk of the town and his local pub - aptly named The Cock.

"I've become known as Lord P [for Phillip] Cock," he said.

"I hope they come and visit again.

"It's an honour to have been their honorary custodian, albeit briefly, as I think they are magnificent and very beautiful."

The BTO said it "welcomes records of all free-roaming birds in the UK, via the BirdTrack app or website in order to get a clearer picture of their populations and any impact they may be having".

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