Tag Archives: birdlife

more ornithological observations

27 Jul

Some of you may recall my recent mumblings about the odd behaviour of a bunch of unidentified, and somewhat nondescript birds. There they were, huddled together on the electrical cable high above the middle of the river, presenting me with a  whole lot of unanswered questions… most of which remain unanswered (and forgotten… along with the birds).birds

That is… until today.

This morning as I crossed the river, I looked upstream where the sky was clear, the river still…and there was not a bird in sight. BUT when I looked to my left the fog was settled low on the water and the surface was littered with small dark creatures who appeared to be hiding in the thick of the fog.

Now I don’t know about you, but this makes me wonder what goes on in their tiny bird brains. So, you guessed ….I ‘googled it’ .

I discovered more than I care (or need) to know about bird intelligence… and while I now know that many are capable of counting… I still don’t know what this odd fog dwelling behaviour was all about (when clearly I would have chosen the sunny side of the bridge).

BUT…It’s Sunday night and no doubt the busy week ahead will mean that these big bird issues will soon be forgotten… along with the weekend.

 

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birds of a feather …

6 Jul

the birds

I have never professed to be a nature expert …not even close.

I mean yes, I like to admire the beauty of a landscape or sunset…and I do like small furry creatures …. but when it comes to actually knowing anything about ethology or the environment I’m pretty hopeless.

If we take this a step further and consider bird-life and the habits of our feathered friends … then I draw a complete blank.

This brings me to my (pretty pointless) point.

Driving home the other day, I crossed the bridge and noticed a gathering, pack, group, gang, flock…(well a whole bunch)… of black birds perched high on the electricity bird on cablecable. There they sat, about 30 of them grouped tightly in a row, high above the MIDDLE of the river. There was plenty of cable remaining either side of them but they were huddled close, all perfectly positioned and facing the same direction, a bit like an army regiment on parade.

As I drove on, it got me thinking about the life of a bird and I realised just how much I don’t know … Like… what DO they do all day ? Surely they get tired of hanging around in the air, and if they stop to rest, they have to perch on a branch, (or worse still a cable like the ones in question), and cling on tight with those poor little claws. No kicking back and relaxing at all… and as far as I know they even sleep in that position, which doesn’t sound like much fun to me.

If there happens to be an ornithologist reading this nonsense, you may care to shed some light on the subject to help me (and no doubt, others) to more fully appreciate the life of these small feathered creatures.

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