OPINION: Oribi Mom – Why did God create birds? So many reasons
There's always something to see.
Drongos really are amazing. I recently learned that these savvy vocalists are masters of imitation. Their strategy is to ingratiate themselves to the other bird species they like to shadow so that they can steal their food or hunt them while they aren’t looking. They can copy bird calls by the hundreds, and they aren’t the only species that do it. White eyes are exceptionally talented in this discipline.
This spring, I watched a pair of Diedricks cuckoos harassing a flock of weavers. The weavers were trying to build their nests, carefully feeding grass through knots and creating the most intricate shapes. Did you know that you can tell the type of weaver by the shape of its nest?
As the weavers tried to sort out their hierarchy for mating and laying, the sun shimmered off the emerald and white cuckoos with red eyes as they played a game. The one cuckoo called relentlessly and dive-bombed and flitted in and out of the nest area to draw the weavers’ attention. It had them really worked up. The other one waited.
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At the opportune moment, it would enter a nest unseen, lay a sneaky egg, and then fly out quickly before the mother returned. Mother weavers raise baby cuckoos, and it is a ridiculous sight. The giant baby cuckoo demands endless food from a mother that is smaller and not at all similar in colour or shape. The cuckoo’s eggs even change colour according to which species they choose to trick into raising their young. It’s truly fascinating.
There is so much to learn from watching nature. Unlike the cuckoo parents who are lazy (or efficient?), the tiny mannikins work tirelessly in a community. They build together and sit on eggs in one big nest. They forage together in twittering bunches that fly here and there, ever vigilant of cunning drongos. My grandmother used to call them frets, and that seems apt as the mannikins jump at their own shadows.
If you want inspiration, a birding day in places like Oribi Gorge is a great choice. But, you may only have to walk a few steps out of your front door to see something awe-inspiring. Haven’t you noticed the extraordinary focus with which swallows build their mud nests in your eaves? Don’t you see the phenomenal agility and stealth of the African harrier hawk? It raids nests in the middle of town, with spindly yellow legs and light grey feathers a sparrow’s nightmare.
Look around. There’s always something to see.
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