There is a special connection at Ransom Wood to Night Jars.
Nightjars are nocturnal birds and can be seen hawking for food at dusk and dawn. With pointed wings and a long tails their shape is similar to a kestrel or cuckoo. Their cryptic, grey-brown, mottled, streaked and barred plumage provides ideal camouflage in the daytime. They have an almost supernatural reputation with their silent flight and their mythical ability to steal milk from goats. The first indication that a nightjar is near is usually the male’s churring song, rising and falling with a ventriloquial quality.(source RSPB)
During the days that Ransom Wood was a TB hospital, the patients described the views as restful – though a frequent complaint was that they were kept awake by the churring notes of the night jar as they slept on the open verandas.
These days Ransom Wood business park continues to have a special connection with nature. In our restaurant, Forever Green, guests and residents enjoy sitting by the giant windows and looking at the bird life. The RSPB are keen supporters of the site.
In the days of the hospital people complained about the nightjars keeping them awake, now they are rare and we are striving to get them back into our environment so when you hear a Nightjar at Ransom Wood take a moment and realise that you have just experienced something special.
Published: 24th May 2019
Life at Ransom Wood is about little stories that make the place a community – here we look at a few of our stories that make us more than just a business park.
Published: 24th May 2019
As part of our 20th anniversary we are writing a history series on all our properties. In this latest article we look at Ransom Hall from 1902 to the late 80s.
Published: 23rd May 2019
There is a special connection at Ransom Wood to Night Jars – learn a bit more about this in our Nightjar article.