A Collection of Musings About Birds

Urbanization has caused the number of birds in many species to decline. Let’s not take our feathered friends for granted.

I write a lot about growing up in North Carolina. I spent a great deal of time outside playing with my sisters. Whether climbing fruit trees, gazing at clouds, or having picnics, I could find a utopia outside.

Watching birds flutter from tree to tree, with twigs or worms in beak, was mesmerizing. Red-breasted robins seemed comfortable hopping on the grass, unconcerned by the proximity of humans.

Unequivocally, the bird sighting that would always leave us star-struck was the cardinal. My Mom told us the old wives’ tale that seeing a cardinal denotes good luck. When you see one, blow three kisses at it and make a wish. Your wish will come true.

I was captivated by this lore as a child. To this very day, every time I see a red bird, I blow kisses at it. The cardinal is the state bird of North Carolina, by the way.

Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds are another one of my favorite birds. I wonder if long ago fairy sightings were just hummingbirds in flight? You never know. Hummingbirds sure look magical. Hummingbirds are feisty and argumentative, usually fighting each other for food, nectar, and pollen.

It’s hard work being a pollinator these days… Speaking of magical-looking birds, I give you the resplendent quetzal. These lovelies can be found hanging out in neo-tropical areas of Central and South America.

Blue jays

There were birds that I used to have disdain for, namely blue jays. Their dive-bombing antics, wing flapping, and screeches forced us inside the house many a day.

They would terrorize our dogs, our cats, other birds, squirrels. Years later, I found out jays are very territorial and only trying to protect their nest by warding off intruders. Their “never scared” approach is highly effective.

You will never see a blue jay partying with an owl, falcon, eagle, or any bird in the raptor family. Jays are afraid and tend to avoid these birds at all costs.

Peacock and Red-headed woodpecker

Some birds are over-hyped and have rotten dispositions to boot. Two birds that fit this description are the peacock and the red-headed woodpecker. Gorgeous birds, but they spend a lot of time out in these streets acting a fool.

If you don’t believe me, enter “peacock gets tased” into your search engine and have a gander at the results.

Let me tell you a peacock story. My friend Sherry grew up in South Carolina. Her uncle had a farm and hosted a menagerie of animals. One of his prized possessions was a male peacock. In all the time Sherry visited her uncle, this peacock had never spread its feathers.

One evening she was dropping off groceries to her uncle. It was dark by the time she turned into the driveway. She was stunned when the car lights revealed something standing in the middle of the driveway. It was that peacock. With his feathers fully stretched out. Strutting around in the dark.

The minute her car lights shone on him, he immediately closed his feathers. Male peacocks spread their feathers (it’s called rattling) when they are showing off to females. Why was this bird showing off by himself in the pitch-black dark?

I have a woodpecker tale to tell as well. Many years ago my sister had a problem with a woodpecker. “I’m sick of him, and all of that knocking. It sounds like he is tearing the whole house down. I’m going to fix him once and for all.” Now mind you, this bird had been rat-tat-tat-tat-ting on the side of my sister’s house for months. Nothing she did to deter the woodpecker had worked. I heard from her several days later. “I got rid of him,” she said, her voice filled with glee.

Her solution: She gave my brother-in-law the biggest, shiniest silver gift bows and streamers she could find. She then sent him up a ladder with the shiny objects to attach to the side of the house. Woodpeckers hate shiny things. The crisis was over. “It’s gone, but half of my house looks like the carnival.”

Backyard birds

While I love looking at colorful birds like painted buntings and lilac-breasted rollers, I have a particular soft spot for super adorable unassuming backyard birds. I adore wrens, sparrows, tufted titmice. These birds are in the passerine family.

Probably one of my favorite family stories about birds is about the aforementioned tufted titmouse.

My niece was about four years old. There was a family of titmice that lived in one of the backyard trees. Every morning my niece would come downstairs to eat breakfast. She could see birds flying and chirping, but there was one particular bird perched on the window sill. Being a four-year-old, she waved hello at the bird through the kitchen window and it flew away.

The next morning the bird came back, bringing over a small acorn. It dropped the acorn on the window sill and proceeded to eat it. When they were both finished eating, the bird flew back to its nest. A child and her bird friend, eating breakfast together. This went on morning after morning. She aptly named the bird, “Birdy”.

Pigeons

Before I wrap this all up, I wanted to say how boss pigeons are. Yes, the pigeons that walk beside you on the sidewalk. In the city or the park. Like the robin, pigeons are extraordinarily comfortable around humans and are HIGHLY intelligent.

Their cousins, the releasing doves (the white ones you see at weddings), get all the glamorous attention, but I’ll take a jaunty city pigeon any day. For those of you that say pigeons are too aggressive, I redirect you to the point of this story.

Pigeons are only adapting to the erosion of biodiversity of their natural habitats. The fact that pigeons or any city-dwelling bird have managed to survive the loss of their homes and natural food sources is a miracle. Some birds are not adapting as well, and their numbers are dwindling. I am willing to bet you a park pigeon would rather eat earthworms and bugs than dry bread corners and French-fries any day.

Nature is competing with “progress” yet humans and animals both come out on the losing end. I can’t fathom living in a world where the sounds of songbirds could become extinct. I don’t get upset when a bird has paint-balled my car with their poop. I wash my car and keep it moving.

Simply put, I am a person who loves birds, and I want to give them their flowers. I am happy they coexist with us on this planet. May they soar forever higher, and their songs be always sweet.

Thank you for reading!