The Feeder Feed: Oriole edition

12 Comments

1. AnAmericanMother says:

   15 July 2010 at 4:35 PM

   Sounds like one of Carl Orff’s compositions for children (my mom was a music prof with a specialty in pedagogy until she retired recently).
2. Mashenka says:

   15 July 2010 at 4:37 PM

   I can’t claim any such experience, Father, but the photography from the camera, with the delightful “background music”, I do enjoy!

   And only yesterday, a little song-sparrow sat on the telephone wire outside my open window, and sang his little song “Pretty pretty pretty yuk yuk jugggg” for me, and when I said in reply, “Pretty pretty pretty” he answered me with another “Pretty pretty pretty!” as if he wanted to get a bit of a “versicle and responsory” going! :)
3. AnAmericanMother says:

   15 July 2010 at 4:37 PM

   Mashenka,
   How adorable! I just had an escort of jenny-wrens to and from the mailbox!
4. torch621 says:

   15 July 2010 at 4:43 PM

   Lucky

   I haven’t seen a single bird at my feeders in three days.
5. Joan M says:

   15 July 2010 at 4:53 PM

   I like the video of the birds.

   There was a monkey running around in the small yards of the town houses where I live this afternoon. It seems it was someone’s pet that had escaped and was hungry.

   My husband called out to me to close the upstairs windows in case it tried to get in, and when I got to the windows I saw it in the mango tree of our next door but one neighbor. It seems that there was a birds nest in the tree and it wanted to get at either eggs or young birds. The parents (Kiskadees), along with one or two other birds were really aggressive with the monkey, diving at it repeatedly and chasing it out of the tree, first onto the roof of the neighbor’s patio and then, when it returned to the tree, out the other side, onto the wall between our yards and the parish church grounds.

   After some time, we saw it up a small tree in the school grounds across the road from our houses. Some young men tried to catch it, but, at first, only succeeded in frightening it, as it ran around the school grounds chattering shrilly.

   Another neighbor told my husband that it had gone into her kitchen and ate food she had on the stove! Finally the young men caught it and brought it back to the owner, who was known to them. He, apparently, told he did not want it back (presumably, too much trouble!), so they decided to keep it.

   Unusual excitement for our small community. I think it may have been a capuchin monkey.
6. Fr. John Zuhlsdorf says:

   15 July 2010 at 5:20 PM

   Joan: I think it may have been a capuchin monkey

   Those zany Franciscans.

   But they are cute when they’re small.
7. Mashenka says:

   15 July 2010 at 7:38 PM

   AnAmericanMother, yes yes yes! They are absolutely adorable when they look you in the eye and sing back to you… and an escort of Jenny Wrens to the mailbox and back is not only a badge of favour, but also certification that you are an okay person. Otherwise, you’d have been dive-bombed for sure! My late, great Dad in his 89th year on this earth once ordered a little wren away from her nest over our front door, and was “decorated” repeatedly for his impudence. May he rest among the saints, I nevertheless told him he deserved it. Wrens rule! But they do believe in property rights, don’t they?
8. AnAmericanMother says:

   16 July 2010 at 8:38 AM

   Yep, they believe in property rights . . . it’s all THEIR property! A pair built a nest in the grapevine wreath on our front door . . . so we just used the kitchen door.

   Our wrens are absolutely fearless. They’re not even worried about the dogs (they will sit on a branch or fence just out of reach and scold-scold-scold!) But the master of dignified indifference is our red-tail hawk. He sat in the low fork of a cherry tree one afternoon and ate a chipmunk while pointedly ignoring all of us just about ten feet away on the driveway. He didn’t even care when we took his picture.

   I haven’t tried talking back to a wren or a sparrow, mostly I chirrup at the mockingbirds and caw at the crows. They always answer, you can have a long conversation with a crow once you get the accent right :-D

   Great story about your Dad . . . may the green fields of heaven be his.
9. Mashenka says:

   16 July 2010 at 11:29 AM

   I could talk about birds all day long with AnAmericanMother! I do think that the birds have much to tell us about heaven: Long live birds! Graceful, beautiful, melodious, clever and exquisite creatures of God!
10. irishgirl says:

    16 July 2010 at 12:45 PM

    Father Z-I saw a Capuchin monkey at a a county fair I went to last weekend.

    Yes, they are cute when they’re small.

    ‘Those zany Franciscans’-Ha! That’s funny!

    The oriole video was cute, Father-and the music was pretty cool, too! “Carl Orf’? Interesting-I thought it was going to be some Chinese opera music! [ducks]
11. AnAmericanMother says:

    16 July 2010 at 1:10 PM

    The robin is the one
    That interrupts the morn
    With hurried, few, express reports
    When March is scarcely on.

    The robin is the one
    That overflows the noon
    With her cherubic quantity,
    An April but begun.

    The robin is the one
    That speechless from her nest
    Submits that home and certainty
    And sanctity are best.

    -Emily Dickinson
12. wanda says:

    18 July 2010 at 7:33 PM

    Love the live action video! The little O’s didn’t seem too happy about sharing with Mr. Woodpecker. It was so fatherly of Mr. Oriole to come and watch over the young’uns at the feeder. I was able to view the top box but couldn’t get the lower box to come on. Great effect to see the birds live accompanied by very appropriate music. That rack/feeder contraption is super! Thanks, Fr. Z.

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