Walking home from church this morning, I heard a familiar laugh close by. Turning to the source, I must admit I was rather surprised. Kookaburra aren't too numerous in the west (they are an eastern bird) and they aren't big city dwellers generally, but lo, there were Mr & Mrs Kookaburra sitting on a telephone wire. Nearby was Mr & Mrs Galah, birds with pink heads/chest and soft gray feathers taking up space on another line. On yet another wire leading from an apartment building to the main telephone pole was a third couple, some ringneck parrots, bright green bodies with black heads and a yellow band around their necks--also called Twentyeights because of the sound they make.
I stood there and watched the goings on...the movement...the noise...the posturing. Was this the start of some aviary rumble? Smaller, less bright, less interesting birds were keeping clear of the area as the three couples squawked on. After a bit, they all dispersed and I continued to walk home.
I mentioned this scene to my neighbor Keith who promptly confirmed it as a daily morning occurrence he witnesses on his way to work or to buy a newspaper. Ha! Imagine three pairs of birds having their "morning tea" and chat on the phone lines. I shall now keep an eye out for them on my morning walks...and maybe bring a few biscuits in case I'm invited to the party.
Showing posts with label birds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birds. Show all posts
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Diving season
My neighborhood is a bit dangerous this time of year. No, it's not the young guys hooning in their souped up cars. Nor have petty thieves started congregating in larger numbers.
It's nesting time. And somewhere in the tall tree planted at the traffic circle at the corner of McMaster and Washington is a thrush nest. Or at least I think it is in the center. Might be in the northeast corner fig tree. Hard to tell. We don't stand around long enough to search for it. The thrush dive bombs everyone who walks past this corner (and who doesn't?) and snaps her wings at your shoulders and your head. Keep away from my babies! No one is safe. None of us has even the smallest inkling of hauling our backsides up a tree to bug this bird's bubs. But there is no avoiding this corner in the center of the street.
Our neighbor Keith says that some magpie on the next street is also getting a bit territorial. I noticed that he seems to keep a much faster pace these days. Me , too. I thought of getting a nice snapshot of someone copping grief from Mrs Thrush. It would be altogether too easy with barely a wait for results. Except that would have put me in harm's way, as well. And I have no intention of recreating a scene from a particular Hitchcock movie.
How long does it take for baby birds to fly the coop?
It's nesting time. And somewhere in the tall tree planted at the traffic circle at the corner of McMaster and Washington is a thrush nest. Or at least I think it is in the center. Might be in the northeast corner fig tree. Hard to tell. We don't stand around long enough to search for it. The thrush dive bombs everyone who walks past this corner (and who doesn't?) and snaps her wings at your shoulders and your head. Keep away from my babies! No one is safe. None of us has even the smallest inkling of hauling our backsides up a tree to bug this bird's bubs. But there is no avoiding this corner in the center of the street.
Our neighbor Keith says that some magpie on the next street is also getting a bit territorial. I noticed that he seems to keep a much faster pace these days. Me , too. I thought of getting a nice snapshot of someone copping grief from Mrs Thrush. It would be altogether too easy with barely a wait for results. Except that would have put me in harm's way, as well. And I have no intention of recreating a scene from a particular Hitchcock movie.
How long does it take for baby birds to fly the coop?
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