New Morning Routine

Gold cherry

By purplehaze

Mon, 24 Jun 2024
  • 1208 reads
12 comments
 

For the past few weeks, I have had a new morning routine; checking Chirpy the sparrow chick survived the night.  He has such a loud and persistent cheep.  (Why do I always think of a baby bird, a robin, a blackbird or a sparrow as male?)  Anyway, on those recent colder mornings Chirpy didn’t make so much noise and I would peek out the back door window until I spotted him.  I daren’t go out to the courtyard in case he got frightened, flapped into garden furniture and hurt himself.  Or worse, frightened the parent birds to stop coming to feed him.  I looked out of the window, due to a particularly loud cheeping session the other evening, I was worried a cat had heard him, but I only managed to scare off both parents, who had been feeding him.

A few years ago, a blackbird chick was also ground-hatched in the courtyard.  He was a tumshie, much bigger than the parent bird.  He used to make whirring, clicking whistling noises like he was made of clockwork.  I happened to witness it dawning on him that he could fly.  He flapped up onto the chair seat, back of the chair, table, and off up, up, up.  It was thrilling.  Soon, he became ‘Top Gun’ blackbird, dive-bombing down from the third storey roof, landing on the table like a birdy Tom Cruise.  I wonder if it’s sweeter to be fledged from the ground and find out you can soar up and up and up, or fledge out of a tree and discover down, down to the ground. 

For a couple of days, I heard a difference in his cheep as he matured.  Not so piercing.  But for the past few mornings, sadly, nothing. 

Then today, saw all three of them. 

Flying.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSNSTerj2Kc

Images for this journal have been posted on Insta @purplehaze_journals

Certificate U
Non-fiction
Journal

Comments

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

I have a blackbird fledgling in my garden now too, and you're right - it sounds exactly like it's clockwork!

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

This is such an interesting Journal entry. Always fascinated by birds and their calls.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by drew_gummerson on

You had me at Top Gun. Congratulations. This is our Pick of the Day. 

 

Submitted by purplehaze on

Thank you, that was very kind, and glad to have taken your breath away :-)

(I hope I'm remembering that correctly as a Top Gun song...)

Purplehaze

Submitted by Tom Brown on

I didn't know blackbirds nest on the ground I don't think we have them here. "He" it's just the English language .. nothing funny. Doesn't necessarily mean it's male! Ships and cars affectionately are "she". And at the end, "Then today, saw all three of them. Flying”. Who knows? We have tried nursing lost or injured birds or chicks but they die, I think is because they are wild birds.

There are birds here "kiewiete" they run around the streets at night when everyone sleeps. Often I've been awake that dead of night studying or walking my dog to the garage shop. Long legs they're very fast and they have a very distinguished call (hence the name). They don't fly well. The nest is made and eggs laid on the ground in the veld. If danger threatens the parents flush out luring the intruder away.

Interesting philosophical question, it must be amazing to live on the ground and then discovering you can fly! Imagine.

I enjoy your stories, refreshing! Tom

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

that's an amazing image Tom, thankyou for sharing! I did not know about long legged birds running about streets in the night

 

Submitted by purplehaze on

Thanks Tom for taking the tme to comment, and I had never heard of kiewiete birds, but they sound amazing, bit like gooney birds in America.  

Thank you for your kind words, am glad you are enjoying the journals.  

Chirpy says hi!

Purplehaze

Submitted by Di_Hard on

It's brilliant when you see the first flight, isn't it? We have herring gulls on our roof and every year some fall off. There's one in the drive now, and we get divebombed going out. When they learn to fly the parents do what sounds like a praiseful holler, heads back, whooping with pride or maybe relief :0) Not sure if this happens if they fly up from the ground, but have seen one (like with your observations, flying onto something a bit higher than them, then a bit more high etc) make it back up to the roof nest, then take off again and THEN get the praise, even from birds on other rooftops, not just the Mum Like getting A after a resit :0)
Hope you get used to the vacuum of chirping soon, and they all come to visit :0)

 

Submitted by purplehaze on

Thanks for your comments, gull chicks are a bit bigger to deal with!   

Ha ha, I do have empty nest syndrome, I must admit.  On the plus side I got all the washing dried outside today, so there are consolations :-)

 

Purplehaze

Submitted by hudsonmoon on

Lovely courtyard slice of birdlife, purplehaze. Much enjoyed.

Rich

 

Submitted by Nolan on

You must have an amazing inner life I also don't mind spending time on my own, you make such lovely observations on what you experience and how you feel, beautifully naive and innocent.

Keep at it Purplehaze, we enjoy all your stories, I read each one & Nolan

 

Submitted by purplehaze on

Thank you I'm glad you're enjoying them, and thanks for your kind words.

cheers

Hazel

Purplehaze