This is the reality of urban living. The life-affirming melodies of birds are obliterated by the sound (noise?) of vehicles. This creates a divorce between the natural world and our metropolitan lifestyle. Still, London might count itself as a very lucky city when it comes to greenery and wildlife. Take a couple of Sundays ago. I was cycling west-to-east on the CS3 (cycle superhighway). Along the Thames I went with dozens of fellow cyclist on a segregated cycle lane. Around us the din of cars, lorries and buses was the only soundtrack that accompanied us. Yet, straight after the Tower of London I turned left and headed for Mile End Park. Immediately I was surrounded by scenery that would not have been out of place in a quaint, typical English village. All that was missing was the scones and tea. Ironically, no more than a few hundred yards away gas-guzzling cars were speeding up Burdett Road, whilst down here people were picnicking on the lush and verdant grass.
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| Please, don't let me be misunderstood |
And why shouldn’t they? Should the magpie not feed its young, too? It is called animal food chain for a reason and we city-dwellers had better get used to it. Even if it means one less singer in the blackbirds’ combo.
Note: I still cannot understand the local cats’ behaviour, though. I mentioned that they daren’t go up the tree where the blackbird’s nest is. Yet, there they are, in my back garden, stalking the birds that come to eat the seeds we put out for them. During the winter season it was fun to see one or two of these felines jumping into our back garden keeping ever so quiet, waiting for all the various birds (and we did have a variety) to alight on the seed feeders. But never, never, did I see the cats catch one.
© 2017
Next Post: “Thoughts in Progress”, to be published on Saturday 27th May at 6pm (GMT)
Sure sounds like the cats need practice. Nature sure has its own way of doing things indeed.
ReplyDeleteWhen I worked in the pet supply field, which I did for 9 years (I did not sell animals, only the supplies), people who would tell me that their cats were finicky would not believe me initially when I told them that they (the owners) made them finicky. I gave examples of cats in the wild...they will try to catch a bird but, when this fails, they must settle for a mouse or whatever they are able to catch. I often wish I had a garden, I would enjoy feeding the wild birds and watching them. Here in Montreal, (outside of your own garden), it is illegal to feed any wildlife...which is for the safety of both humans and animals and birds. However, I love to take long walks in nature and admire the wildlife I see. Thank you so much for sharing, and I hope you are having a great week.
ReplyDeleteI think Linda is right about owners and making cats finicky. My vet has saId that feeding cats a variety of different foods from the time they are small makes them less finicky in terms of what they will eat. As for letting urban cats roam, that is hazardous to their well being and they will adapt to being inside as long as they have windows, toys and sufficient space. As for the birds, I love watching them and find it sad that human encroachment is killing them. Greetings from La Florida
ReplyDeleteThe magpies do indeed need to eat. On this side of the world our magpies mostly eat insects. It is the currawongs who fill your magpie's role.
ReplyDeleteSad for the dead chick. But, yes every living thing needs to eat...truth of the life cycle.
ReplyDeleteI applaud the way your writing continues to grow!
ReplyDeleteSome say the world is divided .... between cat lovers and dog lovers. I happen to be a member of the dog-lover camp and, for what ought to be fairly obvious reasons, I believe neither should be allowed to run free, unattended outdoors.
ReplyDeleteYou header is stunning! I almost fell right into the photograph and rode away on that blue bike. And yes, it is an odd confluence of nature and concrete in cities like London, and I daresay, New York.
ReplyDeleteObserving the way animals interact is a study of life. The cats do not usually invade the space occupied by the birds. But they feel free to stalk any birds who enter into the space cats consider to be theirs.
ReplyDeleteHi Mario - glad they are the blackbirds singing ... those magpies are thugs - yet in the 50s and 60s ... we saw so few as they were protected ... and were well known from the Nursery Rhyme ... now they do flock around and compete. London is amazing with its green spaces -in fact most cities in England are well provided for ... lovely time to be cycling around ... cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteWatching birds is my everyday hobby. Magpies are greedy and fierce when others attempt to eat the huge variety of bird seed. Even massive crows are scared off, which surprised me. I thought crows would be braver. my cat just sits and watches. Only once has she chased a bird (to my knowledge) but now he sits and views without moving a hair.
ReplyDeleteLondon does maintain its sense of a natural world very well, I agree. (Maybe I think this because I spend so much time on Hampstead Heath!) Too bad about the dead chick, but as my parents would say, "If all the blackbirds survived, we'd be overrun!" I wonder if the cat was ultimately the culprit. We have cats slinking around in our yard every now and then, and I know they're after the birds. If I'm home I let Olga out to reassert her territory.
ReplyDeleteEn las grandes ciudades si se vive en zonas privilegiadas por la vegetación todavía uno tiene la ocasión de disfrutar de los pájaros y de sus cantos.
ReplyDeleteUn abrazo.
When I weas a child in the 1960s, magpies lived in the fields and woods. they are now part of suburbia and in my neighbourhood, some believe they are a plague. I think they are so very elegant.
ReplyDeleteDomestic cats are too well fed to seriously hunt for birds. They may catch the odd one out of boredom, to play with. But they are not responsible for serious decline in birds - that's our fault, due to a lack of nesting places, when hedges disappear, trees are cut down, grasslands and lanes are covered with tarmac and concrete etc.
I read somewhere that birds stop singing when there is too much traffic noise - so as long as they make noise, that's good, right?
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I love about London is the way - if you stop and really listen - you can almost always hear birdsong above the roar of the traffic. It's wonderful how a creature so small can still make itself heard in all that pandemonium.
ReplyDeleteIf there are small birds, there will be bigger ones to predate on them. As for the magpies and cats - sometimes it's hard to feel charitable towards one creature that seems to have it in for another. But at least they are only answering their own instincts. Nature red in tooth and claw and all that.
we have a lot of magpies in Sweden. They are everywhere. In spring they gather in groups during or before mating season. They break up the "gang" when they are nesting.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteBiased for blackbirds (their song never fails to cheer me up), I wonder whether the magpies in a city have their predators or whether their populations can increase too much.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from the woodlands! :)