The house sparrow is once again the bird most commonly seen in a Northern Ireland garden, according to the RSPB NI. Thousands of people took part in the charity's 45th Big Garden Birdwatch.

Suddenly over the sizzle of the sausages I heard an extraordinary noise and a flock of ... around 40 or so birds had flown out to a small island in the centre of the lake to roost.

A flock of house sparrows holds a shout fest before settling down for the night in a communal roost, and they seem to engage in noisy chatter at mid-morning, too, after they feed as a flock.