By Angel Alma
You wait and wait, and one morning you’ll notice it. Chirps and shouts, cries, songs, all the typical tunes of migratory birds. They are eager to announce their arrival and declare: “This is my territory.”
Some species arrive overnight, like fieldfares. Mum usually walks a certain route to listen until she can hear them from the woods.
Often, one hears birds before seeing them. For example, a Pied Wagtail mum heard chirping when she was sitting by the river. Check the surroundings, and soon the bird was jumping on a stone trying to catch insects above the water surface.
Honkers, as we kitties call geese, Mum heard during her walks through the fields. “Honk Honk”, she looked up and saw the typical formations fly over. Goosebumps!
Perhaps the most significant arrivals every spring in Finland are chaffinches, singing loudly near homes and gardens. It may be THE early bird most Finnish people recognize. Curiously, most individuals claim familiarity solely with magpies, craws, seagulls, and cuckoos. Not every paw needs to be a birdwatcher; just enjoy the performance. But if you are interested in learning more, YouTube and phone apps can help.
In a few weeks, fresh voices will join the concert. Loud gulls fly above roofs, as they have learned to nest inland. High houses are like seaside cliffs.
Mum loves the day when she hears the first swifts. Several, then more, launched skyward. They arrived this year on May twenty-third, the same date as the prior year, which proved rather amusing.
Later in June, the soundscape changes. Nesting is in full swing, and you hear more and more warning sounds. Parents warn the chicks about approaching humans, dogs, squirrels, us cats, and bigger birds. When gull chicks jump from the nest, often onto the asphalt, shouting is constant. Humans need to beware of their hats, as the bird parents attack to defend their offspring.
We’ve installed special materials on the roof to safeguard our elderly residents. It’s paste you can buy from garden centers. Birds see it shining and avoid it. Other houses use flickering lights to tell gulls are not welcome.
You need to take the warnings seriously. A while ago, a woman was taking a phone pic of an Ural Owl. The bird was warning, of course, and suddenly pecked the woman’s eye. A trip to the hospital, a lesson learned, plus a story in a newspaper.
In July, the soundscape changes again. It’s calmer and more silent, and female Curlews leave. Dads are taking care of the kids until they are ready to survive on their own.
Summer hasn’t ended, despite our jokes about Finland’s brief summer with minimal snow.
The Anipal Times 