This is for the birds

I noticed yesterday that my fish have stopped feeding. That means that fall is in full sway, and they’re beginning to go into winter dormancy. They’re not such amazing fish – just a single koi and three oversized goldfish – but they’re mine, have been around for a few years, and I quite like them. No fuss, no muss. They just live in their little pond world. It’s not only their world, but it’s their entire universe. It’s all that they know, so their wants and needs are simple.

Once they’ve stopped feeding though, I know it’s time for the birds to come back. I’ve seen a few towhees, chickadees and juncos, so I’ll have to get the bird feeders up to look out for their needs. Some killjoys say you shouldn’t feed wild birds, because it makes them dependent and lazy about foraging for themselves. Well, considering that the average ‘foraging for himself’ wild bird has a life expectancy of something like 11-months, I won’t lose sleep over my violation of nature in the raw. I compromise by not feeding them in the summer. Then there is a lot of stuff they can find on their own.

I like my birds. When I was young I couldn’t think of anything so dorky and unappealing as bird watching. Now, I watch birds. Last year we got a lazuli bunting around the place for a few days. It was very cool and beautiful. So, yes, I bird watch, and even note them down. No, I don’t go on expeditions, but I can understand why people do.

Birds have always gotten a lot of bad press. They’re considered stupid. Well, dumber than mammals, hence expressions like “birdbrain.” Not so, of course. Parrots, for example, are remarkably smart, as are crows and ravens. Hell, crows even use tools. Birds are also capable of emotion. Geese, swans and eagles (among others) mate for life, and if one member of the couple dies, the other will often pine away. Ducks, on the other hand, will screw anything, and indulge in even gay encounters, or will cross species attempt to get it on. Ducks are the barflies of the bird world.

Anyway, I have some favorite birds, domestic and otherwise. They include:

- Towhees
- Robins
- Crows
- Ducks
- Chickadees
- Stellers Jays
- Swallows
- Hawks
- Owls
- Pelicans
- English robins
- Cardinals
- Brazilian cardinals (Hawaii)
- Zebra doves (Hawaii)

And a lot of other ones. There, that’s my testament to the avian world this rainy fall day.