Great noise makers
May 11, 2011 (Wednesday)
Remember the poem that includes a verse, “When up on the roof there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter?” Well, yesterday I heard such a clatter outside that I rose from my chair to see what that sound was. It turned out to be Grackles. Their presence and their loud sounds scared our cats, who normally welcome the challenge of a lone bird. But there is strength in numbers, I guess, so the birds were intimidating.
What are “Grackles?” They are great big blackbirds. They eat almost anything in sight. They love being together and making lots of noise. According to experts at Cornell University, “The best way to separate Common Grackles from blackbirds and cowbirds is by size and shape: Common Grackles are larger, lankier, longer tailed, and longer billed. Common Grackles have a widened tail, often held in a V-shape, even in flight. Great-tailed Grackles of the Southwest and south Texas, and Boat-tailed Grackles of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, are even larger, and the males have much larger and more deeply keeled tails.”
Their habits sort of remind me of the State Legislature and the U.S. Congress: they make a lot of noise. If you ask them why they are always chattering loudly, they might say, “That’s what we do.” They remind me of MacBeth’s summation of life: “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” His view of life is dastardly pessimistic, but applicable to modern-day politics. Like the Grackles, lots of noise. No wonder the Bible urges us to pray for them.
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For those of you who wanted to see the painting described in Monday’s blog, it is on the site now. I had to take a photo. You can see the site by clicking here.