Chuff
Melding folklore, science, and hope, this illustrated book tells the inspiring journey of the red-billed chough. These charismatic species, which had drastically declined in the Cornwall and Kent areas of the UK, are now soaring through those very skies. Their successful reintroduction into the wild and the efforts to bring them back give us hope for future conservation.
Where not a sound is heard
But the white waves, O bird,
And slippery rocks fling back the vanquish’d sea,
Thou soarest in thy pride,
Not heeding storm or tide;
In Freedom’s temple nothing is more free.
By John Harris, 1820-1884
Prints
Book
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Ideation
Book cover
Throughout history, choughs have been mentioned using different spellings. Its precise spelling in modern English is ‘Chough’. I wanted to make it simple and fun, so I named the book ‘Chuff’, which is how the bird is pronounced.
Part 1
Ecology of the Red-billed Choughs
Part 2
History & Mythology
Part 3
Extinction & Re-introduction
Research
Falmouth, Cornwall
I started my primary research by visiting the library in Falmouth, where I got to see the illustration of a mother chough reading to her kid on the library card, created and signed by Rebecca Cobb. I also got to see the influence of chough in the town, where a lot of shops had emblems with choughs displayed in their window.
Canterbury, Kent
On hearing about Guillermo del Toro’s cabinet of curiosities, I went to the Beany House of Art & Knowledge. They have a collection of taxidermied birds and animals that are considered unique and charismatic. Choughs are also seen on Canterbury's coat of arms due to its association with Archbishop Thomas Becket.
Penryn, Cornwall
I did a little bit of bird watching in Penryn, where I could record a lot of woodland birds, and the endangered black-backed seagull.
Dover, Kent
Kent Wildlife Trust, English Nature and other organisations have collaborated to reintroduce Choughs on the Kent coastlines. They started by building an Aviary in Dover Castle to raise young chicks and release them once they were adults. I went to the White Cliffs of Dover in February and saw a signboard at the beginning of the trail to keep an eye out for the red-billed chough along with the others.
