I don’t know much about birds, but I watch them a lot because I find their behaviors fascinating. A few days ago, I witnessed a bird drama play out at length while I filled my gas tank.
On the ground around the gas tanks, someone had spilled a bag of some sort of cheesy poof chips. Some were intact, some trod upon or driven over. Among the spoils were five birds: two common pigeons and three birds of another feather. (I’ve already said I don’t know much about birds.) Of the three, two were of like size while the third was about 20% larger than its cohorts.
What originally drew my attention was the racket they were creating. The two smaller birds were ganged up on the larger bird, shrieking at top volume. They bullied, confronted and drove back the bigger bird again and again. The large bird screamed back incessantly, but neither challenged the smaller birds nor was driven away.
The odd thing was that it was never about the food. All the while the feud was ongoing, the two pigeons were busily eating their fill. With never a pause or break in focus, they ignored the cacophony and swept up the salt-and-grease offering spread upon the ground. The bickering trio stepped around and between the pigeons as the confrontation escalated, with never a glance at the intruding gluttons.
Even the beleaguered bird stopped occasionally to scoop up a tidbit, and its attackers didn’t seem to mind, even pausing a moment while the morsel was swallowed. Their focus was unwavering, however, and they never tasted the treat nor let up in their scolding.
I don’t know what that big bird did to incur such wrath, but boy, spending the night in a secret nest might be a good idea. Those other birds were seriously pissed.