One for Sorrow.........

A visitor from the US recently asked what the pretty black and white birds that we have in Scotland are called.  Magpies!  I hadn't really thought about it but was surprised (I don't know why) to find that they are not so common elsewhere in the world.  I was also surprised to hear them described as pretty because most people I know don't like them.  Why not?  The song of course:

One for sorrow, two for joy;

Three for a girl, four for a boy;

Five for silver, six for gold;

Seven for a secret, never to be told;
Eight for a wish, nine for a kiss;
Ten for a bird that's best to miss.

Or the older version:

One for sorrow, two for mirth,
Three for a wedding, four for a birth,
Five for silver, six for gold,
Seven for a secret not to be told.

Eight for heaven, nine for hell,

And ten for the devil's own sel'.

Why one for sorrow, two for joy?  Apparently they mate for life so seeing one means it's lost it's mate. Not  necessarily considering she could be sitting on eggs.  Seeing one Magpie is supposed to be bad luck, they have been considered an ill omen since the early 16th century.   For some reason, like crows, they are associated with the devil and seen as evil?

I know people who's day an be ruined because of one black and white bird.  This has lead me to suggest a stapling programme to ensure they are always seen in pairs.  People who lack a sense of humour think this is cruel.

Apart from the song people dislike them because they are cheeky, challenging and arrogant.  They are killers who are getting blamed for the decline of songbirds such as the thrush (although the RSPB have proved this isn't the case). As a result, they're often hunted but Magpies are cunning and difficult to trap. 

So they are just trying to survive (live long and prosper even), mate for life and have a cheeky chappie attitude so people hate them. They have adapted with the environment and people decide they are villains, bit ironic really.

So having someone described them as pretty made me take another look, they are beautiful, striking birds with a bluey / green tinge to their black feathers.  I also learned that they kill loads of creepy crawlies and pests so not so evil after all.  In China and Korea they are a symbol of happiness so at least someone loves them.

I've decided that the only superstitions I'm bothering with are ones that mean good things so as far as Magpies are concerned I'm following the Chinese.

Falconry

During my holidays I like to try new things, sometimes it is stuff that scares me other times just something I've wanted to do for a while.

This holiday I tried Falconry:

Wikipedia definition - Falconry or hawking is a sport which involves the use of
trained raptors (birds of prey) to hunt or pursue game for humans.

It was a great experience and I would recommend it to anyone as long as they are not squeamish (avoid the last picture if you are).

The Falconry company had five birds for us to see, first we got to hold Swivel the eagle owl. Eagle Owls are not native to the UK but are brought over from Europe as pets. It's thought they are let loose when people can't look after them. If a pair were to breed in the wild they would cause problems with our ecosystem. But enough of the lesson. The owl was giant and pretty heavy. I had to hold my arm up slightly as if you lower it Swivel likes to walk up and stand on your head. As he sat on my hand he had a good look at me with his giant yellow eyes. I stroked his feathers and he had a bit of a hiss at me. Found out that he hoots rather than the twit twoo that is only tawny owls.

Swivel the Eagle Owl

Sitting on my hand

Giant wings, so impressive

After Swivel we got to fly Moss the buzzard. They are supposedly very common and are often seen in the UK. Moss and other buzzards are pretty lazy, Moss had been hunting and had caught a worm, not very impressive really!

Moss was let loose and went to sit in a tree, he was pretty well camaflaged.

When a peice of meat was put on the glove Moss would swoop in and grab the food.

After that we had some fun with Loki the Harris Hawk. He was flying down rows of people between our arms and legs.

There was another Harris Hawk, a female to show the size difference and Norman the peregrine falcon who didn't really do anything :0(

After we had taken some pictures the birds were given some treats and then put back in their boxes to go home. Stop scrolling now if you don't want to see Swivel eating. The only bit of disappointment is that the company don't bring their Golden Eagle out to play in case it eats any small dogs. Wish I lived close enough to go and see it.

So thats my "What I did on my holidays" essay for this break, wish I'd had something like this to say when I was at school. If you get a chance to do some falconry it is definitely worth it.

The Crow

I am just arriving home from the beach with my dog when I notice that the grass outside my house resembles a scene from Hitchcock’s The Birds. There are over 20 crows on the grass outside my flat and they are making so much noise it’s actually quite frightening.

As I get closer they don’t fly away, my dog is slightly in front and they are not bothered by her either. As we get within a meter or two they do retreat slightly. They are now sitting on the fence and in a nearby tree.

Then I notice the crumpled black shape on the grass. I move closer to look and the noise of the bird’s increases. I realise that the shape is another crow. It is lying on the ground with its neck bent at an impossible angle. I move even closer and can see that it has blood on its beak; it seems to be coming from its throat.

The bird doesn’t move at all as I approach, nothing, not even a twitch of its wing. The only movement that shows it is still alive is its eye. When I look into the one visible eye I can see that it is still alive. The eye seems to express the bird’s fear, confusion and most of all pain. I look into its eye for so long. I wonder what it is thinking, is the pain too intense for it to think or can it not feel anything. The neck seems to be broken so maybe it is paralysed and is just wondering why it can’t move.

The other crows are still there crying, do they feel pity for the bird on the ground? Or are they just waiting for me to leave so that they can attack the bird, finish it off and eat it? I know they will eat dead animals, will they eat another crow?

I think I should kill it, put it out of its misery, end the pain. I look into the eye and see intelligence. I wonder if it would want me to kill it or would that just add extra terror to its final moments? I could twist its neck. No, I can’t. I just can’t kill something. But it is suffering, would it be kinder? I should. I step towards it and that eye just flickers, I can’t, I can’t even touch it let alone kill it. What if I make it worse and just increase the pain. Could I drop something onto it and crush its skull, I look around and there is nothing that looks right. I look again into its eye and in my head I apologise, “I’m sorry you are hurt and I’m sorry I am not going to help you”

I turn my back on it and start to walk away. I am sure it is watching me. Is it relieved that I am going or is it frustrated that I didn’t help? The noise from the other crows increases but I keep walking.

I am in my flat now but I know it is still out there. Should I go out and do something? The noise from the birds seems so loud. I sit and think about the crow, what is it feeling, what would it want me to do?

I eventually look out the window and the bird is gone. It couldn’t have flown away, it couldn’t even move. Could the other birds have carried it away, No that is a stupid idea, it was a big bird. Maybe one of my neighbours has moved it. Maybe it died and they put it in the bin or maybe they killed it.

Even though the bird is gone I still feel guilty. I should have done something but I just couldn’t find it inside me to kill an animal. Could you?