Sunday 21 February 2010

Spring of the Jerk bird

Hey everyone.
The sun has been shining here in Sanda Japan for the past few days and all the plum blossoms on my bonsai have opened. Shinto shrines now smell richly of a host of plum blossoms and tulips and daffodils have been coming up. This warming has also meant another things, the birds are coming out stronger than they were in winter. I have made a friend with a neat one with peach cheeks, white eye stripes and a black cap. He is a rather well dressed chap who I call momo (japanese for peach), all he wants to do is peck insects from my garden and I am more than happy to make his acquaintance.
There is a smattering of other birds not nearly so character filled or pretty but entirely new animals to me being a North American. One of these new birds is a bird I have named the "Jerk-face-jerk" bird or simply "jerk bird". This long tailed grey bird (jerk) chases all other birds, including my friend momo and then mocks everyone and everything with his loud call, when he belts no other birds come near. He does not sing like the rest he screams, like a cat/whinney baby/construction-worker-whistle. This squak is so piercing it can be heard all around and he just keeps doing it. Most annoying thing about this is that he even does it into the late evening and early night! Maybe he is working on developing a new call or has something caught in his throat, whatever it is just be glad you do not have a "jerk" bird in your country.
\PS. I am sorry if such low-ball words lower the esteem of my blog, but it needed to be said, this bird is a real jerk, he is currently ruining my morning view.

1 comment:

  1. Your Jerk bird sounds a lot like the Magpie in Alberta. It's a real nuisance and very aggressive. It'll take your sandwich right out of your hand at a picnic. Is he still hanging around your place? Mom

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