Monday, June 11, 2007

rescue mission

I was in the kitchen and I heard screaming. At first I thought it was just the regular stuff, but it continued for too long and I knew something was wrong. I thought to myself "What poor animal do the cats have now?" When I went outside I didn't see anything right away. I walked further out towards my pumpkin patch and I saw two of my more benign cats trying to stare something to death. I crept up behind them and shooed them off.
At my feet was a baby mocking bird, crouched against the wood stairs that led up the hillside. Its little beak was tangled in a dense spider web, and its mouth was opened wide in an attempt to scare me off. Poor little bugger.
Its mama was on the fence next to the stairs, shrieking and scolding me. Her flashy white and grey feathers were a blur as she hopped back and forth, trying to redirect my attention away from her chick. Here was the screaming I had heard.
I gently disentangled the baby, with extra care for her tiny bitsy little feet and legs. She chirped in terror but I was working as quickly as I could. I carried her up the hillside hoping I wouldn't fall on my head; its pretty steep. I picked a tree and reached up as high as I could and placed the chick. To my surprise the chick jumped up higher into the pine tree and mama came swooping down. I was so pleased that the scent of my hands on the baby didn't make the mama bird reject her.
The outcome was good, and the only downfall is that that they have taken up permanent residence and mama now shrieks bloody hell at my cats all day.

5 comments:

Mrs. M said...

Wow! how great that the momma didn't reject her...that's what I expected to happen.
Mockingbird...have never had the pleasure of seeing one...they're just part of a song to me. We just have crows, ravens, red winged black birds, and other little ones in our neighborhood. No mocking. Just squawking!

Two Mittens said...

That story made me laugh. In a good way.
I don't know any Mockingbirds either. We have bunnies in our backyard sometimes though...that's all I got...

Diane Dehler said...

What a sweet story; it would make a great kids book if the person who saved mocky was a child.

Lebbercherrie said...

Mothers only reject the little ones when the scent is completely overpowering the little ones scent (after long time holding or cuddling). And birds don't have strong noses, only two tiny holes next to their beaks, mostly for breathing. Rabbits are very prone to reject and even eat their young when the scent of humans is too strong on them.

BoggyWoggy said...

It's an old wives tale about the "human scent" thing. You did a great thing...
I love my cat, but I want to spank her little pink bottom-hole when she corners birds, or, worse yet, snags hummingbirds. Grrr....