Beaks

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“Awful glad you got the peanuts, missus!”

Birds are such enchanting beings.

And so diverse.

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Bluejays being corvids are stroppy, noisy birds with little in the way of table manners.

Doves appear to exist in their own little world. They seem not entirely aware much of the time. As I watched these birds. the jays, starlings and sparrows repeatedly fluttered off while the dove remained. Periodically it lifted its head as if wondering where everyone had gone.

Perhaps that’s why when we find evidence that a hawk has made a killing it is so often a dove.

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When there’s a killing, it’s usually the Cooper’s hawk what done it.

As I admire all birds and realise they simply kill to survive, I try not to mind when I find those piles of feathers. it is Nature’s way, after all.

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We often see eagles, Red-tailed hawks and turkey-vultures as well as ospreys.

For fabulous osprey photos, look up Mark Smith Photography on Facebook!

(No relation)

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We also frequently see kestrels but I very seldom manage to photograph one because they quickly take flight. The above bird perched briefly with the sparrow it had just caught and I was able to focus the telephoto.

What a beautiful bird it is.

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“My beak’s bigger than your beak!”

“Yeah, but there’s more of us!”

The squirrel was probably hoping they’d all flutter off and leave the nuts for him.

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All birds delight me and I watch them all happily but I do get excited when one of our rare visitors shows up, such as the Flicker.

Currently we are watching for another bird, not because it is rare but because it is injured.

In the few cases where it is possible, we catch the bird and keep it safe until it recovers.

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But there is no chance we could catch this bluejay and even if we did, there is nothing we could do to re-attach its broken mandible.

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Despite the catastrophic injury, the bird was managing to scoop up nuts and apparently to consume them, because a week later we saw it again…

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Despite bad weather and the damaged beak, the bluejay appeared to be doing well.

Broken beaks can grow back but in this case the damage is probably too extreme, yet the bird is surviving, for now anyway.

Once you pay attention, it is surprising how many injured birds and animals you see and amazing how well they manage their disabilities.

I am not an ornithologist, nor can I even be called a “birder”.

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I am just a person who loves and cherishes birds without needing to know the details of their existence.

To me they will always be mysterious, magical creatures.

Deeply admired and dear to my heart.

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