Birdies in the Treetops (and Elsewhere)

Random bird stories

When I was working in the garden yesterday afternoon, I noticed how quiet it was. The only sound was the birds, singing all around the yard. This, I told myself, is why we live in the country.

Blackbirds

The blackbirds must have a nest in the tall grass and bushes along the back fence. Two of them had a fit about Casper, our cat, who was lounging around the garden. They broadcast their warning so well that even I, a human, heard and understood. Casper is such a twerp that I was ready to laugh if they dive-bombed him. If they had been mockingbirds, they would have, but since they were blackbirds, they just "chirred" from the tree above him.

Mystery bird

A bird has been trying to fly into the windows of the house for days now. It just doesn't give up. It approaches the windows again and again and tries to find a way inside.

Yesterday, I had my car by the garden to unload some stuff, and the little bird wanted to get inside my car. It flew up to the windows repeatedly and fluttered around. I tried to get its picture, but it wouldn't let me get very close. Here it is, sitting on the side view mirror.

It has a reddish breast and a brown back. It's not nearly large enough to be a robin, unless it's a juvenile. Also, its back is not gray like a robin. I've looked through the bird books for an hour and I still can't decide what it is. I think it may be a female since they're often more drab.

Wrens

A wren has nested in the wren house that hangs on the trellis where the grapevine grows. I really must move that house next year. It's along the sidewalk, and the poor little wren thinks she has to fly off her nest every time someone goes by. Some days she isn't bothered much, but when we're all home and working around the house and yard, the little wren has a very bad day.

Hummingbirds

The hummingbirds let me know this spring that I needed to set up their feeders. One evening, I looked outside to see a hummingbird flying around the shepherd's hook where the feeders had been last year. It was obvious that he expected to find food there, so I quickly brewed some syrup, cooled it down, and filled the feeders. They hadn't been in place five minutes before the little hummingbird found them.

Birdies in the Treetops

"Birdies in the treetops" is a phrase from a little song we sang in Sunday School, many years ago. The rest of it goes like this:

The birdies in the treetops sing their song;
The angels chant their chorus all day long;
The flowers in the garden blend their hue;
So why shouldn't I, why shouldn't you, praise Him too?

(Author unknown)