In article , Joe
wrote:

The sparrows are back. Strange, we have a garden-full of greenfinches,
yet we're excited by the return of the sparrows. They've been missing
from our garden for at least three years ... although there were always
good populations on the hilltop, less that quarter mile away. There are
several Song thrushes up the hill that are rare at our end.

This is clearly where mine have gone! Oddly enough my South London
garden has normally had lots of sparrows - mainly I think because of
some impenetrable shrubs that I should have thinned but have left
untrimmed for their benefit.

But a couple of months ago they either left or, I fear, may have been
eaten by a very dedicated large dark Persian cat.

Lazarus

--
Remover the rock from the email address