A promise of blue sky in the west provides a bouncy feel to the morning. The mood has clearly spread to the ponds. A large group of geese are displaying their version of fratboy behavior, with a deal of splashing, preening and honking going on. A group of five ducks had taken over the two-bird log with no sign of its cormorant guardians anywhere. A playful goose tries to join them, but finds himself alone. Clearly that’s no fun, so he launches himself into the air. With no runway, he blows it and splashes and honks for a few yards before he can retract his undercarriage.
On my return from the coffee pot I see that he has managed to find a friend and they have taken up residence on the log. Meanwhile one of the cormorants on the three-bird log has taken to the water and is circling around making the geese back off. This is clearly not a log that is up for grabs!
There are two herons at the ponds today, both hunched up and scraggly with their long neck feathers flapping in the light breeze. The ponds are still too cloudy for easy fishing.
With the jockeying for real estate on the ponds increasing as nesting time comes rushing to meet us, I wonder if the birds should take note of Dr. Sergio’s study from the Donana Biological Station in Spain. He has been studying black kites and their housekeeping habits. They build rather nice looking nests of twig and moss but then litter it up with our litter. Strips of white plastic bags are a favorite, but bits of paper or cloth will do in a pinch. Other black kites steer away from becoming neighbors rather like most of us are reluctant to move in next to a yard decorated with rusty old cars and dead kitchen appliances. ‘Don’t Mess with Bubba’ is a message that seems to work in the avian world too.
