Earth Explorations

When one has a bird feeder, one has small birds. And when one has small birds, one may have large birds like a hawk. I have an occasional hawk that visits the backyard. When the hawk--either a Sharp shinned or Coopers I'm not sure which--shows up the other birds flee. Except when they don't. This morning, I saw the hawk perched on the branches and a downy woodpecker, stock still, hiding from the hawk by clinging motionless to a bird food brick. The bird food brick was big enough to be a vision barrier between hawk and downy woodpecker (or DOWO using the American Ornithologic Union abbreviation) but would not have offered much protection had the hawk managed to spy the downy. The DOWO must have missed or ignored what is apparently the universal signal that a hawk was nearby.  I do not like to interfere in the affairs of animals, though you can make the case that in feeding the birds I've already meddled. Fair point. Also, full disclosure: in that moment I was Team Downy. (My...

Full disclosure. The pandemic is kinda kicking my butt when it comes to every day exploration. Acedia, torpor, and ennui have replaced zest, curiosity, and wonder in my emotional makeup. Getting out to explore feels like a huge amount of effort, made more effortful by the cold and short hours of daylight.  Thank goodness for my bird feeder. Well, actually bird feeders. Plural. I have three plus a bird food brick or two. And a heated bird bath. Things haven't gotten out of control. Yet. We'll see where things stand when the pandemic abates. We have a goodly assortment of birds that come visit, the inevitable house sparrows, finches both goldfinch and house finch (and once a purple finch). Juncos. We have woodpeckers of the downy, hairy, red bellied and flicker variety. The red male cardinal and greenish brown female cardinal come visit as do the blue jays. There are fox squirrels, of course, and in the middle of the night the trail cam tells me that skunks, opossum, an occasiona...