Operation Chickadee

Daffodils, 3/8/13
State Botanical Garden of Georgia

Recently, I paid a visit to the State Botanical Garden in Athens. Spring seemed to have already arrived there. The daffodils screamed happiness as soon as I drove through the gate, and the lenten rose was spectacular. I was reminded why I took a 12-year detour into horticulture and recalled all the good people I met through the years while I worked in the green industry. I came home and puttered in my yard here at the cabin. I’m clearing, selecting which trees to keep, creating paths, pulling briars, installing birdhouses, and working on drainage issues. Eventually, I will add plants for year-round interest. The place could use some ornamental landscaping; my gardener heart leaps with joy at the thought.

A chickadee got trapped inside the cabin the other day. I had left the screen door propped open for Melvin who was dawdling outside. Melvin never came in, but the chickadee did. I discovered the tiny bird resting on the middle horizontal rail of one of the upstairs windows. When I found him, he yapped at me, dug in his heels and refused to budge, despite my best efforts to shoo him towards the open door. I attempted to scoop him up in my hands, but he was too fast and flitted away, complaining all the while. Eventually, I decided to try lowering the upper window sash to allow his escape, assuming I could poke out the window screen. When I lowered the top sash, he ended up wedged between the upper and lower window. Yikes! I was about to squish Mr. Chickadee right before my very eyes. I then tried grabbing him by his tail feathers, which protruded above the middle rail, but he screamed loudly, and some of his tail feathers came out in my hand. At this point I was ready to break the window and rip the screen, whatever was necessary to save the little black and white bird from a horrible death. He grew quiet and watched me intently from his glass prison. I worked carefully to maneuver the window open wide enough to allow me to punch out the screen, while not killing Mr. Chickadee. Once the screen was out, I slowly raised the window until he was no longer sandwiched between the two panes, and he flew away in a flash. Thank goodness - I didn’t kill Mr. Chickadee!

I no longer leave the screen door propped open for a dawdling Melvin.

I have since seen one chickadee visiting the feeders who appears to be short a few tail feathers, but otherwise fine. So this is a bird story with a happy ending. 

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