Each Day Already is a Challenge

Birds and Squirrels and Sunshine...Oh My

I just witnessed the strangest thing(s). You know, since it's this early it just has to be about the birds or the squirrels or the beautiful sun, right? Right.

Until today, I had never really thought about the fact that the birds come to the same feeding place but are not really socializing outside of their "kind." Sounds a bit like people, doesn't it?

Our yard is the favorite for all the birds and squirrels, probably because we don't use chemical fertilizers nor chemical weed killers. We'll pull the pesky weeds, sure, but we're not using chemicals. And our yard is the greenest. And it must be full of bugs and worms, 'cause the birds - of all kinds - land here.

Anyway...as I was sitting on the porch this morning, I noticed one poor squirrel was really being chased by two birds. I realized that they were probably mates and wondered if the squirrel was getting too close to their nest. (They were all way too close to the electric transformer to my liking.)

I've seen birds "mess with" squirrels before. But not like this. They chased him up and down the pole, out into the street, even under my car. They wanted that squirrel gone. Or maybe worse, the way they were chasing and swooping down on him. I have never seen anything like it.

Then....the other birds started joining in. He was being chased by every kind of bird in our neighborhood. The birds were singing loudly in the trees and they were all chasing that one squirrel.

I sat on the porch wondering....if birds can understand each other, even though their music all sounds different to us. I wondered why they appeared to be working together, even though they can all come and eat in the yard and totally ignore each other. I also wondered if they were all swooping down on that squirrel because of something he did to one of them, or to all of them.

Then the answer appeared. Under my car and coming into my yard were a bunch of smaller birds. At first, I thought they were just a smaller kind of bird. Then I realized that they appeared to be baby birds. And there were a bunch of different kinds all playing together.

Now isn't that too cool? Even baby birds don't see color. I'm sure eventually their parents will tell them that robins don't play with cardinals. But today, they're all one happy bunch. And their parents are in one accord as well, since they're all protecting the kids.

I guess we do that - to some extent.

I am so glad that Dad suggested to me years ago that I might enjoy watching the world wake. He was so right. I would miss so much if I slept too long.