A Treeful of Birds

More About Birds and Animals... Life in Christian County, Kentucky... Life in the Upper South...

This is what Keely's friend Taurus jokingly calls a "bird-fruit" tree -- a tree so full of birds that from a distance, the branches appear to be loaded with fruit.

The Upper South is an overwintering area for blackbirds, grackles, and starlings. They fly together in huge flocks. I enjoy seeing them in flight.

A couple of centuries ago, there were so many passenger pigeons in this area that a flock passing overhead would darken the sky. The black birds are much smaller than the passenger pigeons were, but when I see a big flock of blackbirds take wing, I imagine the awesome sight of thousands of passenger pigeons flying overhead.