One of my absolute favorite pastimes is watching animals and learning about each one’s personality.  I can’t really say I have a favorite species to engage with, but I can say that the greatest surprise I’ve had is to discover that birds are one of my favorite animals to watch ~  and not just from afar. I think I’m surprised by this partly because, for most of my growing-up years, no one talked about birds having personalities, at least, they didn’t talk to me. Then I met Bella and Edgar Allan Crow. They taught me to watch closely, move carefully, and trust completely that each bird is his or her own self.  And now, there’s Fearless.

Bella is a red-tailed hawk who had been in a car accident. As a result, one of her wings was permanently damaged, so she can no longer hunt. Her home is the nature center where I volunteered as a raptor caregiver for two years.  Bella had personality in spades, and she knew exactly what she wanted and what she would ~ or wouldn’t ~ do. 

Bella had this look that she’d give you if you were asking her to do something that didn’t fit her plan. She’d look at whatever object you were holding, then she’d look at you, then the object, then you ~ and her entire gaze conveyed her displeasure. If Bella wanted only white mice and you brought in black and white mice, she’d give you the look.  The next day, the black and white mice would still be sitting on the stump right where you’d left them, and Bella would be a bit cranky. If you walked into her enclosure wearing the protective glove and told her to “step up!” and she wasn’t stepping anywhere, she’d give you the look. And if you tried to force the issue, she would actually hiss at you. 

Edgar Allan Crow was just a baby when he came to the center. He had fallen out of his nest and hit his head, damaging part of his brain. He was taken care of, and so lived and ended up in the care of many of us.  He struggled on many levels, but he was persistent in all tasks crow, especially when it came to learning to talk. Crow parents are excellent teachers, but Edgar didn’t have his parents ~ so we took on the task of teaching Edgar to talk. 

I loved the days I could walk into the animal care area and start my work by saying hi to Edgar, first in English, then in crow. At least, I hope I was saying hello in crow. I’d stand right in front of him and drop my head to my chest. Then I’d slowly raise my head, reaching my neck out and up, and caw at the same time. Edgar tried. He’d watch me with his head tilted to one side, his good eye peering intently at every move I made. Then he’d drop his head and try very hard to caw as he raised his head.  This was difficult.  Usually as Edgar was raising his head, he’d fall over. Or he would stay on his feet, but the caw came out as cheeps. One day, though, Edgar put it all together. I came in and said hello to him. As soon as my caw ended, he put his head down, and as he raised his head, stretching his neck out and up, this complete and resonating “CAWWW” came from his throat. He had never heard that sound, and the look on his face when he finished was amazing! I clapped my hands, praising him, and watched him arch his neck and ruffle his feathers. He got an extra minnow that morning. 

And now there’s Fearless, living with five other baby chicks in a large metal tub in our house. Fearless is black with a white V on her back, and she has the longest neck I’ve ever seen in a baby chick! As soon as I begin reaching my hand into her tub ~ to change the bedding, or water, or food, or just to get them all used to human hands ~ up comes Fearless’s head at the end of her long neck, reaching as high as possible. Then she walks over to “THE HAND” and pecks at my fingers. 

One day, a ladybug fell into the tub, about 10 inches from Fearless.  She saw it, and out came her head at the end of her long neck, reaching toward this strange thing crawling on the bedding. Her beak got closer and closer and closer…then, suddenly, the ladybug stretched her wings out. Up jumped Fearless, her head went back down to her shoulders, and she raced to the other side of the tub, jumping right between two of her buddies, and landing with her face to the wall. 

I guess it takes a while for all of us to become truly Fearless.