Fascination With The Enemy .....

Well, this aviary's proven worth every day of a life times ambition to own one! I have it sited right outside the window I'm sat beside. Thus I have only to look left and there it is, about fifteen foot away. And I expect this damn post will take me 'for ever' to write because of it; I just can't keep my eyes off that damn aviary!

Sadly, " Peck, Peck " simply couldn't acclimatise in there. Too much space? What ever. He was rough as fuck ~ a really dirty, shabby ball of feathers ~ by the time the damn thing actually got here. He was a Dead, dirty, shabby ball of feathers inside of forty eight hours. Poor little mite.

I genuinely feel the absolutely constant, torrential rains we've been having since ..... well, since I can remember, in all honesty. I feel the weather put paid to him. Having now observed my remaining bird, and considered the wider environment? I'm seriously wondering what effect all this has been having on the wild population of magpies around here too.

See, I'm now in the privileged situation where by I'm able to closely observe my birds every reaction to a variety of subtle stimuli. Most especially, any 'change' in the weather. And, for the purposes of my own little bit of 'rough science', I feel this bird is a recent enough capture to still be exhibiting the most natural of responses.

Frankly; Ye should see that bird when it's chucking it down like stair rods out there! He creeps in under his little slate lean too and just sits there. A perfect picture of misery and dejection. That's when I watch him and expect I'll lose him too.

But when, like right now, we have a rare break in the down pours? What a different bird! Out he comes. Hops up onto one of the lower perches. Flies about between the higher ones. Preens like mad and has a good feed. Earlier, to my amazement and delight, he even took a damn good bath in his water bowl!

Right now, having done all that, he's sat on the corner shelf I put in there. And that's at the perfect height to allow him to watch what's going on, across the hedge there. So, this bird's displaying an interest in life and a fastidious predilection with personal grooming. Just as any healthy bird should, indeed must.

But, let's look again: When the rains hit, my bird has a completely water proof shelter. He stays bone dry, yet just the situation clearly depresses him. How about a wild bird, hunkering down in a tree? Depressed. Unable to feed. Still getting more or less rained on too. That'd make him cold, and a cold bird needs to eat. Not in the cold rain .....

And, comes that break in the weather? My bird needs only skip over to his food bowl. It's all there. Laid on and waiting for him. No need to search, thus using up yet more sparse energy reserves. Not like his wild brethren.

In fact, that is one Lucky Magpie. His every comfort is assured. He only needs to keep his own spirits up, against this chilling, cold, damp and depressing weather. I'm doing my best to help him. No one's going to help the wild ones.

And ye know what? There barely are any wild ones around here nowadays! I watched them breed. I saw them fledge. Now they've all simply vanished. My whole area is pretty much devoid of wild pies right now. And, it wasn't me!

See what I'm saying ....?