For the most part, the back yard at the Willett Family Zoo is a peaceful place of calm coexistence. The only exception that we see regularly comes from the hawks – one of them overhead will set off all of the squirrel “guards” with that really high-pitched “alarm!” call they have. It works – the last couple of days they’ve woken me up before 07:00 with that racket.
But the baby squirrels seem oblivious to the pigeons, which still outweight them by a factor of at least two or three.
Of course, the other monster that’s constantly causing all of the feathered creatures to fly and the furry ones to flee to their hidey holes under the pergola, is ME. Imagine the audacity that I must have to think that I can just go strolling out into my own yard any time I feel like it. Even when I’m going out to re-fill the bird seed feeders (pretty much daily now) I get attitude, not gratitude. The finches, wrens, and scrub jays now will line up on the back cinder block wall and bitch at me to hurry up, while the pigeons will sit on the roof of the house and do that whole purring pigeon sound, but in unison and an octave down, so it sounds like the soundtrack from “The Birds.”
I’m hurrying, I’m hurrying! I’m not asking for the birds to flock around and worship me like I’m some animated Disney princess (although I do have the pretty pretty princess hair!), but would it kill them to simply relax and not freak out when I’m simply coming out to feed them and help out? The hummingbirds are proving that it can be done – I’ve had hummers come up to two separate feeders that were inside of arm’s length from where I was standing and they minded their own business and fed while I minded my own business and watched them. (A little bit of awe was involved.)
Peaceful coexistence! If everyone can get along with the baby squirrels and pigeons, why can’t they simply ignore me?
We Love The Stars Too Fondly 