Best Of

Didn't know you could eat lavender...it grows here pretty well. Might be time to harvest some of them.

Also....if I had a crow nest / raven spot next to my house, I would definitely call their "leader" Saruman.

Birds here are mostly garzas and sparrows. They mostly stay away from humans. There is also a cernícalo in the 'hood that hunts the other two types of birds down from time to time... we also get robins sometimes, but they are rarer.

In fact... The only time I had a "stand off" with a bird was with a robin; yes, these mini birds with their reddish brick coloured chests. I knew they were extremely territorial...but not to the point that he would try to pick a fight with a human....probably a warrior in a former life? Or a drunken brawler..?

"It's a 5 minute walk from my house to the pub. It's a 30 minute walk from the pub to my house.
The difference is staggering"

Those all look pretty benign to me.

Years ago, my wife had a team of sled dogs. One winter, we had a large number of Ravens that hung out in our yard, and they amused themselves by picking up frozen dog poop and playing with it - carrying it high into the air and passing it from one bird to another. When they tired of the game, they would drop the poop into the woods or into other people's yards, saving me a lot of trouble - they kept the dogyard cleaned up all winter. They also harassed dogs, cats and people walking on the road - not defensively, but - apparently - for their own amusement.

Bluejays are considered to be one of the smartest birds around and build & use tools for food collecting. They teach their offspring these skills. Often are in adversarial relationships with any nearby squirrels as they both compete in collecting, stealing, and hiding of each other's nuts for winter. Deliberately rub the folic acid found in ants on their feathers to protect them against mold and fungus...and the list goes on & on.
We have Steller Jays around here who revel in lording it all over the local cats and collecting in large groups around fruit when it starts to ferment to party like there's no tomorrow.