Reply To: The Searcher: Significance of the rooks
I think the rooks represent Mart and his lads who close ranks to protect the status quo and watch Cal to make sure that he doesn’t upset that status quo. The birds are gregarious, but do not take to strangers, evidenced by the abandoned nest in a neighboring tree where “some bird, infringed on their mysterious laws and got taught a lesson.” Mart appears neighborly, but is really keeping an eye on Cal until he can be sure Cal can be one of them.
