A Walking Stick, Owl And More...

Thank goodness for neighbours.

Yesterday I bumped into my young neighbour whilst waiting at the doctor's. We chatted as one does and inadvertently she dropped a tidbit of information that had me all agog this morning.

Another fox had been seen meandering out of a garden down the road from us and in the morning too. She was quite right to have asked me whether I wasn't scared walking whilst this wild animal was prowling the street! At first when she told me yesterday I laughed at the idea of being scared but this morning, I couldn't resist and took Bob's wooden walking stick along for protection. As if that would deter a wily fox!

Wouldn't you know it... today I ran into just about everyone and everyone asked me why I was taking a stick along. I fessed up my qualm of walking whilst a fox was astir which they clearly thought was stupid ( fox or me with stick? ) but gave me nods and chuckles nonetheless.

Naturally I encountered no one but a few deer and dogs. Anyway, for the next few days I might take it along or until the thought of foxes are mere distant memories on my mind.

It wasn't long after I got back from my walk that my phone rang. It was my neighbour, she of the news about the fox, who asked me if I could investigate a commotion outside our back bathroom window. She couldn't go outside because of her young baby but had noticed a whole flock of birds flying about in great agitation, crying out in fearful tones.

I equipped myself with phone, dish towel and courage and walked outside. It was bizarre to see crows and others circling whilst making a noise as if someone had died. I stepped closer and saw on the verge next to our barn, stuck between bare twigs and thorns, two birds fighting. Well, it was really one big bird ( I think it was an owl ) holding down a smaller bird ( a pretty jaybird ) with the weight of its claw on the birds head. They were screeching like crazy but stopped when they saw me.

At first I didn't know what to do but then I tried to get close to shew the big owl away from its prey. Good grief, did it give me a dirty look yet still it didn't budge from the other bird's head. Eventually I picked up a stick and as I was trying to prod it away, it flew off and thus released its captive. We were all stunned. The eagle held position a few meters off, the hopefully only shocked jaybird flew atop a shrub and I stood there contemplating what I should do, eventually going back inside whilst phoning my neighbour to tell what had happened.

Nature being nature, it must have been the way of this jungle but somehow I at least saved one bird from early death, although I have a sneaky suspicion that once I had gone back inside, the fight would have continued...

Biggi