birbs, or the original contrarians

I was walking home from the grocery store the other morning and noticed a pair of crows cawing away on top of an apartment building. I imagined how their caws must have echoed down into the apartments below, and laughed to myself. Crows often perched on my chimney at an old apartment, screeching at each other, the sound vibrating into my living room. I'd light pieces of paper on fire in my fireplace just to make them fly away for a few minutes. But, they always returned and continued their avian conversation until they were good and ready to leave.

Watching this pair hop around was good fun, until I attempted to get a photo. One crow flew away as soon as I pulled my phone out. The other turned around. Shy, or contrarian. Or both.

me and the birbs vs squirrel

I've ventured into the world of wild bird feeders, now that the salmonella issue seems to have receded.

The most intriguing part is watching the evolving pecking order in the back yard. I've moved the feeder around a few times, since my initial set up was waaaay too squirrel-friendly. The very first day, I sat on a work call and watched a fat rodent, bushy tail switching, scarf down half the contents of the feeder.

Little birds with a nest in an old vent in the building next door swooped down from time to time, either to grab a snack or try to chase away bigger blue birds. The blue birds are loud and snippy, and sometimes fly close to the feeder to try and knock extra stuff out of it, that they then retrieve off the ground.

A crow has stopped by on occasion, much too big but still optimistic about scraps. And a reddish bird, but it wasn't very interested and flew off after just a moment or two. I even saw a bunny back there one morning.

My second attempt to re-hang the feeder deterred the squirrel for only a few tries. I laughed until I wept, watching it scramble from branch to branch, reaching and stretching and contorting and finally--success.

My most recent attempt seems so far to be squirrel proof. It comes by several times a day to re-investigate the feeder placement, try to find new branches to lean in from, falling and scrambling and sitting, glaring, tail twitching. Thus far, I'm victorious.

your daily bird

The cutest little birds chirp away in the bamboo every morning. Sometimes they stay put when I head out to the recycling bins. It's comforting that something seems normal. They're so tiny and alert and chirp the sweetest song.