Many of you will know that I love wildlife and nature. I am very lucky to live in the countryside where we share our garden (and sometimes the house) with a multitude of wild creatures.
It also means that it is not difficult to sit and watch the comings and goings of the various wild friends we share our place with and although I don’t really have favourites – the birds are always interesting to observe.
May is a great month for wildlife and one of my favourite times of the year.
We have nesting birds and fledglings taking their first flaps in the big world and its always interesting to watch them develop.
Most of the garden birds at the moment have their first chicks fully fledged and are now hopping around but have not strayed too far from the nest (or at least their parents). They are still being fed and are still learning the lay of the land.
I don’t understand bird calls – but I imagine that there is a lot to learn in the early days of being a baby bird. Especially when you know that very soon you will be on your own and flying solo!
One thing I do notice is that different species develop at different rates and have different requirements. They can pretty much all fly and hop but some need more attention on the basics like what to eat, where to find shelter and how to stay safe. Very few of them fly off and are totally independent.
They all need some kind of support and guidance as they start their new life.
Young birds also know their place in society! A baby sparrow has to wait its turn at the feeders and birdbath. It also learns (sometimes the hard way) to get out of the way and respect the woodpeckers, jays and other big beaks.
They hold top level certificates in feathers and flight but need to gain that experience before moving up the food chain and further up the pecking order. They learn how to communicate, how to respect each other and how to work as a team to meet an objective.
None of them come out of flight school ready to take on the world single-handedly.
Other birds need to learn other skills. The raptors and hawks need to learn different flying skills and feeding techniques. It is hilarious watching a young sparrowhawk hit a tree or miss a target. But sparrowhawks learn quickly and learn from both success and failures. No doubt the other birds learn from the sparrowhawks success and failures also (sometimes the hard way).
In fact they probably learn more from failure than success.
We will never be able to get into the mind of a bird. But my guess is that they don’t over analyse too much and that they have natural gifts, talents and survival instincts that make them the creatures they are. They are naturally equipped to deal with their environment and develop throughout their lives to meet the demands of a changing landscape.
Birds like most creatures have needs. They have to deal with threats on a daily basis. They have to keep themselves going on a routine basis despite external problems or supply chain losses (when the lazy arse doesn’t replenish the feeders). They need to grow and prosper. They need to stay fit and healthy. They need to develop and learn.
In my crazy world of thinking – it doesn’t really matter if you are a sparrow, sparrowhawk or cyber security apprentice – starting out in life. We are all the same.
We are all born with natural skills and talents.
We all need to develop and hone our natural skills in a way that meets our needs.
We all need to learn new skills from time to time and develop these in line with our changing environment.
We all need to communicate and respect each other, regardless of where we think we are in the pecking order.
We all need to know that as soon as you have fledged there is still a whole world of learning in front of us.
We all need to ask for help when we need it and accept guidance.
We need to learn from our success and more importantly, our failures.
We probably all need to eat more seeds and healthy food (but I am certain that if sparrows were allowed into McDonalds – they would be in there enjoying a MacFlurry!)
Given the right conditions and right training we can all fly high.
Flap Long and Prosper
