Mystery in East Winch as village's peacocks vanish

More than a dozen of the birds had roosted in the trees surrounding the church at East Winch for more than a decade.

The feral flock is believed to have been founded by escapees from a nearby farm and had steadily grown.

While some villagers adopted the birds and fed them when they visited their gardens, others complained about their noise and territorial males attacking their cars.

Now the churchyard has fallen silent, while just one of them remains.

A peacock christened Charles by villagers is the last surviving member of a flock which colonised East Winch (Image: Chris Bishop)

Robert Baldwin, a retired floor layer in his 60s, now looks after the last surviving male bird, which he has christened Charles, with his wife Elaine.

"We think some people have been taking them," he said. "You don't have 14 or 15 peacocks and peahens and then have just one. 

"It's bang out of order. People used to complain about the noise."

Police said they had received no reports regarding the birds, but local councillors have expressed their concerns.

Michael de Whalley, who represents the village, near King's Lynn, on West Norfolk Council, said he had approached the parish council in an effort to try to find out more.

"I am sad to hear that the peacocks have disappeared. It is concerning," he added.

Adele Godfrey, a 56-year-old support worker who has lived opposite the church for 10 years, said: "I'm very sad about it. They were ever-so tame, they used to come to the door.

"When I moved here it was one of the things I loved about buying the place. I lived in inner cities before."

Robert and Elaine Baldwin at their home in East Winch with the village's last surviving peacock (Image: Chris Bishop)

Some believe the birds may have fallen victim to the traffic which thunders through the village on the nearby A47.

But Ms Godfrey said: "I walk my dogs along the road every day and I've never seen one run over."

Another villager, who asked not to be named, said: "Last year someone caught the peacocks and took them away.

"People had mixed views about them. This time of year, the peacocks would get quite territorial.

"If you had a shiny dark car, they'd see their reflection and attack it."

Certainly, the flock seems to have had its critics. Giles Stovold, who lives on Church Lane, said there were complaints from some villagers about the noise the birds made.

The peacocks had been roosting in the grounds of All Saints Church at East Winch (Image: Chris Bishop)

Before they disappeared, the peafowl became an unwitting party to a row over plans to build a house on land off the nearby Lynn Road.

The proposal was turned down on appeal two weeks ago after being refused by West Norfolk Council last March.

Two villagers objected, saying the development would disturb the birds, although it was turned down because it was against council policies on so-called "backland" development.

Charles the peacock in Robert and Elaine Baldwin's garden at East Winch (Image: Chris Bishop)

Andrew Chapman, who applied to build the house, could not be contacted.

But he has previously spoken of how fond he is of the peacocks and insisted his proposed development would not disturb them. He also keeps chickens, ducks and turkeys.

“I love animals – I have rescued three in the last year,” he said. “We love the peacocks. We certainly wouldn’t cause them any harm."

When Mr Chapman applied for outline planning permission to build the new property, Mr Baldwin and neighbour Mark Watson objected on grounds it would disturb the birds.

Peafowl have sometimes turned up in gardens in parts of Norfolk (Image: Chris Bishop)

Mr Watson said the creatures were wild and had been in the village as long as anyone could remember.

"I would generally see and watch these birds every day," he said. "Any disruption to their environment could impact these birds that also make their home at the church."

Mr Baldwin said: "I am an animal lover and concur with my neighbour that there are many peacocks and peahens that travel from Church Lane over the gardens down towards Lynn Road.

"They are beautiful wild creatures who together with the nesting bird population would be greatly disturbed by this application."

PEACOCKS IN NORFOLK

Peacocks and peahens have long been a popular ornamental bird and many have escaped captivity and roam freely.

A family of peafowl is called a bevy. They can also be called an ostentation, a muster or even a party.

These exotic birds have been known to mysteriously appear in people's gardens and last April a bevy of peafowl took a particular fancy to gardens in Dereham.

And in 2022 a pair of peacocks also went on the loose in a suburb of Norwich and were spotted wandering around Eaton.

While male peafowl are known for their brightly coloured plumage, their female counterparts have drabber colours and shorter tails.

 A peacock's tail makes up more than 60pc of the bird’s total body length.