ASD Birds

I read recently that birds seem to have an aesthetic sense most like ours. At first I thought that was a striking observation, a fascinating example of animal "intelligence." However, I have been reading yet another coffee table book, this time about Evolution. A discussion of sexual selection in that erudite tome has given me second thoughts. Specifically, it seems like there's a certain kind of, uh, appreciation that is just more fundamentally biological than the fluid, sophisticated delectation of a human aesthete.

To wit, when surveyed, human males from one end of the planet to the other express a preference for females with a certain hip-to-waist ratio; commonly called an hourglass figure. Similary, Peahens invariably prefer Peacocks with lots of "eyes" on their tail feathers.

Now, I can imagine a critic describing an abstract, hourglass-shaped objet d'art as, say, "wonderfully supple, hypnotizing in its gentle turns &c, &c." Next door, the same critic might encounter, say, a tapestry with a pattern of "eyes" on it; immediately would ensue prating about the "mesmerizing decorative qualities, Lacanian symbols," whatever.

So far, the critic & the sexual selectors seem, at least on one level, to be roughly the same. But the difference would appear in the next gallery which contains (a) a rough-edged, chunky, block-like abstract sculpture; &, (b) an abstract painting that happens to include the beautiful colors of an Eastern Bluebird.

The critic will immediately begin to hold forth about "the stark, aggressive angularity" of the sculpture & the "deceptive simplicity" of the lovely canvas. However, significantly, both the gentlemen survey respondents & the Peahen would be left cold.

In sum, appreciation of art or beauty seems to be a much more general intellectual capability or sensibility. It seems to me that, in order to believe that birds have a capability that is more like the critic's than like the gentlemen respondents', we would have to show that the Peahen appreciates the colors of, say, an Eastern Bluebird as much as does the critic.

A similar point: we can appreciate lots of different music, including a variety of birdsong. But, apparently, birds are largely indifferent to songs of all but their own species.

So, although it might seem like birds have the same aesthetic sensibilities that give rise to our appreciation of art & music, I doubt if that's really true.

Starting listening to To See Every Bird On Earth by Dan Koeppel. Apropos of a recent remark to the effect that undue emphasis on one's life list is considered poor form among birders, I was interested in Koeppel's ideas about listing. Basically, he says it's a separate activity. Bird watching is one thing; listing, or collecting is another thing altogether. I would say the two activities intersect or overlap at the moment in bird watching when one brings all one's knowledge & observational skill to bear on an identification or naming problem. As soon as the bird is identified or named, it's natural enough to turn one's thoughts to the other activity: adding an item to one's collection.

It seems to me that undue emphasis on one's list is kinda like talking about money. It's not that people aren't interested in it; but, somehow it's impolite. E.g., it can easily have the unpleasant air of bragging or whining. But, more fundamentally, I think talk about the list is like changing the subject: talking about one's collection is not talking about bird watching.

On the other hand, I have noticed that nobody in HMBC seems to mind off-hand references to lists: "I remember that; that was a life bird for me!"; or, "Was that a life bird for you?" Also, they all seem to enter gleefully into the fun of the final tally after an outing.

Went to a stretch of powerline trail between Route 9 & Route 87 south of town this morning. Haven't been there for some weeks. Was delighted to see an Indigo Bunting there again, & to hear lots of their tweet tweet twang twang cheep cheep song. Also, I thought the one I saw was trading contact calls with another in trees, but not sure.

However, a more intriguing sight was about a dozen Cedar Waxwings soaring around over the trail. Their behavior reminded me of the way Swallows swoop around getting insects; also, some hovering like Kingbirds. I've read that Cedar Waxwings "[o]ften fl[y] out to catch insects in midair." (Lives of North American Birds). So, I suppose that's what they were doing. But somehow it seemed to have a playful, show-off quality to it that made it seem a little more interesting than ordinary feeding.

Interesting article :re species counts as indicators of quality of life in a particular place. Although they only mention biodiversity & environmental quality, it seems to me to be valid in the more general, ordinary sense of the expression, too: species count is reasonable proxy for local attitudes, traffic, sanity of development, &c.

If you, like me, sometimes ask yourself why you're standing in the bushes smacking bugs trying to see that guy who really just wants you to go away, it seems like an important point; & they're right. E.g., before I could identify an Eastern Bluebird with certainty, i was thrilled to see one in our neighborhood because it meant, well, that this is a nice place to live; it hasn't been ruined. Yet.

As a lover of words, I enjoy trying, however weakly (foolishly?), to articulate what it is that's so gratifying about birding. Some items I would include:

1. Mix of surprises & gratifying familiarity
2. The enjoyable technical or analytical challenge of naming or identifying birds
3. Per Jen Hill in An Exhiliration of Wings, it's about "seeking connection."
4. Somehow, on a day that includes some reasonably good birding, one doesn't feel that life is deferred: one is really living that day.

Actually, the biggest change I've perceived this week is that song of Wood Thrushes has disappeared. Instead, air is filled by some obnoxious stridulatory noise; presumably Cicadas, but I don't know.

This summer the hay meadow near our house was mown around July 4th; & a nearby corn field that was fallow was plowed last week. The hay field had Bobolinks & Red-winged Blackbirds nesting in it. I only saw Red-wings in fallow field. In both situations, I expected to see distraught, confused birds hanging around the edges after holocaust; & expected to see squabbling near by when displaced birds showed up. But no such thing. It's as if they just disappeared. Here's an optimistic speculation:

1. Many had finished raising brood
2. When territories overrun, they took cue to give up territories & become transients, so to speak
3. Then returned to flocking. I imagine I started seeing flocks around midddle of July, but not sure

Saw several individuals of different species that I thought were molting. And quite a few immatures. It seems like plumage of both molters & immatures is kinda downy or fluffy mess.

1. Immature Northern Cardinals with mother
2. Molting Robin. Motley, shabby guy.
3. Sparrow-sized; gray above, yellow below; gray head & nape; darker wings; dark yellow or gold throat, chest, belly; slight fork tail; hint of gold under tail; no eye ring; no wing bars. Apparently chased out of bush by Common Yellowthroat Warbler. I mention it here because it had overall downy quality.

An item I neglected to mention yesterday. Not only did I see what I think was Blue-headed Vireo, I also saw what I think were some Blue-winged Warblers. Both are nice to see anytime, but the intriguing aspect of yesterday's sighting is that both were "out of place," so to speak. I have been walking that little piece of trail with all senses straining for months, & I never noticed those guys. Maybe I just missed them. But I wonder if it isn't something more interesting, viz, they're just passing through?

Today I decided I want to record some of my thoughts about local birding. What I want to explore is probably too detailed & self-centered for rhbirds, should that forum ever take off. That seems to me to be the essence of blogging: unabashed, exuberant talk about what I want to talk about. So, some thoughts.

1. Saw a Rufous-sided Towhee (I like old name) in suet tree outside office yesterday. He had something red in his mouth & didn't tarry long. Ignored suet.
2. Saw a juv Rose-breasted Grosbeak this morning with small pink patch. So, now not sure what to make of the grosbeaks I've been seeing that have bold chestnut stripes on crown.
3. Saw flock of small yellow birds that I thought were juv Yellow Warblers. It looked to me like the Goldfinches were driving them away.
4. More Empid confusion. This morning I believe I was seeing & hearing both Willow & Alder.
5. I think I saw at least one Blue-headed Vireo, but didn't see white lore.
6. Having a lot of trouble generalizing about bird activity. Last week on a mild morning I saw lots of birds & speculated that comfortable weather had something to do with it. On the other hand, this morning was extremely hot & humid. But at about 0730 the edge of woods south of trail behind east field exploded with activity. I guess the reality is that it just depends what individuals happen to be around & what their immediate imperatives happen to be.
7. Making some progress in Candace Savage's Bird Brains. If nothing else, it adds some interest to common birds like crows & jays.