Hello, tweets.

I just observed a remarkable phenomenon in my yard that I've seen
many times, but I thought I'd pass it on.

The yard was pretty quiet, then a few birds showed up, then I noticed
a number of robins coming to the fountain/bird bath. I started
watching, and within minutes, one species after another came to the
water, chickadees, juncos, House Finches, House Sparrows, Song
Sparrow. Meanwhile, there were birds at all the feeders, birds flying
back and forth across the yard, birds picking insects off the
windowsill, and just a flurry of birds everywhere. I watched in
amazement as a goldfinch came to the fountain - first one I've seen
in the yard in 7 years. Then my only Townsend's Warbler so far of
this fall right after it. Then activity died down somewhat, but there
were still a few birds in sight, and 20 minutes later there was an
Orange-crowned Warbler in the fountain, first one I've seen here this
year. You have to understand that my yard isn't exactly jumping with
warblers, and in fact I don't see as many as I used to. I don't think
it's because I'm looking out the window any less.

Anyway, quite some time ago it seemed obvious to me that a common
avian strategy is to come out in the open only when other birds are
already out there behaving normally, indicating no predators around,
and that's what I see over and over again in my yard. No birds at
all, then a burst of activity with numerous species, then back to
dead quiet. A really smart Sharp-shinned Hawk or cat would wait until
the middle of one of those flurries, then strike, but it may be that
the predators' strategy is to attempt to catch the first bird they
see, as (a) it might be the only bird around or (b) another predator
might be watching and get there first.
-----
Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net

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