wordsfromanneli

Thoughts, ideas, photos, and stories.

Flicker Baby

47 Comments

Mom told me to wait for her up here. I don’t like being alone.

Oh, my! I hope she hurries. I don’t like the look of that crow.

Mother Flicker dips and glides,

While her baby sits and hides,

Harvesting some lovely ants,

Adds a beetle to enhance,

All the goodness that she feeds,

To her babe and fills his needs.

 

Junior waits while mother works,

Hoping that no danger lurks,

Crows and merlins and the like,

Waiting for a chance to strike,

Junior always eyes the skies,

Watching everything that flies.

 

“Come on, Mama!” Junior cries,

“Bring those insects, bugs, and flies,

I’m so hungry all the time,

Don’t you hear the lunch bell chime?”

Nervous baby can relax,

Mom is back and she brought snacks.

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Author: wordsfromanneli

Writing, travel, photography, nature, more writing....

47 thoughts on “Flicker Baby

  1. John's avatar

    Such lovely photos and Poem, Anneli! ☺️

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Sonja's avatar

    So sweet. Hope this flicker stays safe. I always worry about all the baby birds when they appear. There are so many predators lurking.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Lynette d'Arty-Cross's avatar

    That’s such an adorable poem and your photos are wonderful! I love seeing the flickers.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Ursula's avatar

    The poem is wonderful and the pictures too. I hope that all the babies will make it!

    Liked by 1 person

  5. einfachtilda's avatar

    Ach…zum Glück 🤗 Wieder ein Vogel gerettet.

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Grant at Tame Your Book's avatar

    Delightful poem, Anneli!

    Like

  7. belindagroverphotography's avatar

    Sweet poem and photos. The world is a dangerous place for these young birds.

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Carol Balawyder's avatar

    Have you thought, Anneli, of putting all your birdie and squirrel posts and poems in a collection? They are lovely to read and look at. ❤

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Jacqui Murray's avatar

    That is so cute, Anneli. I’m sure this is a cozy ending and baby is safe, not some dystopian one that will break my heart!

    Liked by 1 person

  10. 100 Country Trek's avatar

    Thanks for these photos and poem

    Anita

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Peter Klopp's avatar

    Another delightful photo essay, Anneli!

    Liked by 1 person

  12. D. Wallace Peach's avatar

    Lovely nature photos, as always, Anneli. And a cute rhyme to go along. We started feeding our birds away from the house because the jays and mourning doves were intimidating the other birds. I hope little Flicker thrives. 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    • wordsfromanneli's avatar

      Just like with humans, the big ones will bully the little ones. I’ve stopped feeding the birds for a while (during the good weather – but I’ll start again as it chills down a bit) because I was attracting hawks, starlings, jays, pigeons, Eurasian collared doves, and raccoons). I thought I’d let things settle down a bit before I put more birdseed out. Also I’ve been hearing that the avian flu spreads more easily with the feeders. Towards the end of the summer I’ll put some food out again. I don’t want to make the birds too dependent on me and attract their predators, but I do want them to have plenty of reserve strength for the winter. Fine lines, right?

      Liked by 1 person

      • D. Wallace Peach's avatar

        Yup. I can totally relate. We had no hummingbirds this year, and I think it was from attracting all the aggressive birds. 😦 I didn’t know about the avian flu. Good reason to change things up.

        Liked by 1 person

        • wordsfromanneli's avatar

          It was reported in the news back in May of this year and affected a lot of poultry farms as well as wild birds in Canada and the States. I think that’s why the price of chicken went down – people were not wanting to buy it because of the avian flu. My nephew who lives near Vancouver (BC) said he had crows coming to pick up dead birds on his deck and roof. (There’s a thought for your novels. The crows are like the black undertakers.) I found an otherwise healthy looking sparrow dead in my yard and suspect it was bird flu. I’m hoping that the worst is over, but the songbird numbers really seem to be down.

          Liked by 1 person

          • D. Wallace Peach's avatar

            So that’s may be why I haven’t seen as many songbirds. Sigh. I wonder if climate change is making the bird more vulnerable to disease too.

            Liked by 1 person

            • wordsfromanneli's avatar

              My guess would be more to do with the use of pesticides. I think extreme weather conditions could be responsible for some of the decline but not climate change (not yet, anyway). Just my opinion, for what it’s worth. I don’t really know.

              Liked by 1 person

              • D. Wallace Peach's avatar

                The timber industry here uses a lot of pesticides. Oregon has the highest autism rate and second highest Alzheimer’s rate in the US.

                Liked by 1 person

                • wordsfromanneli's avatar

                  I hate to see pesticides used unless they are absolutely necessary. I don’t include having a lush green lawn as a high priority requiring pesticides to keep the bugs from eating grass roots, but there are people who do that. A person who lives way down the street from here killed a whole brood of baby quails one time. I watched him spraying while they ran across his lawn. I said something but it was like talking to the wall. One chick out of nine survived to the next day.

                  Liked by 1 person

  13. Jennie's avatar

    Awww… reminds me of the classic children’s picture book “Owl Babies.”

    Liked by 1 person

  14. Lori Brewer-Quiltingneeds.com's avatar

    Aww. I let no one use my front door this spring because some swallows built a nest at the corner of the front door and I did not want them disturbed. Love your poem.

    Liked by 1 person

  15. Pingback: Flicker Baby – Nelsapy

  16. Adele Brand's avatar

    Very cute! Hope it pulls through.

    Re: avian flu, sadly it’s been a huge issue in the UK this year, especially on the east coast.

    Liked by 1 person

  17. bigskybuckeye's avatar

    Another delightful poem! Anneli, your verses and photography always bring a smile.

    Liked by 1 person

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