Indiana Roadsides

by
Jean Hughes
February 26, 1996

This morning I started for my walk with the intention of looking for last year's bird cradles, but I have been so smitten by shy bird songs that I have only gone a few steps from my dooryard. Robins and cardinals, titmice and woodpeckers, nuthatches and jays, and the little ones who sing so gaily every day of the year, the chickadees, are serenading the sunshine.

I have become a familiar part of the wild scenery. It is almost as if I carried fern seeds in my pocket. They are supposed to make you invisible, you know.

Cardinals and chickadees fly in to sit on the branches of the small plum tree where I stand. It is a thrill when the birds fly toward me rather than away.

Yesterday evening, rather than calling the tree sparrows, I stood at the edge of the field and whistled, softly, the old song that begins "Just a song at twilight." I do not believe that any touching of life is a coincidence, so imagine my joy when a big flock of tree sparrows flew across the field and sat in nearby bushes to listen.

Last year, in a small restaurant, I ate french fries that were coated before frying. I experimented until I discovered the method.

Seasoned French Fries

Peel and cut into thin strips: up to 8 medium Idaho potatoes.
In a medium plastic bag place: 2 T. flour and 6 T. yellow cornmeal.
In a skillet or french frier, place enough vegetable shortening 
to reach one inch deep. Keep shortening hot.
Run a large handful of potatoes under cold water and shake slightly. 
Put into the coating and shake the bag well. Fry until golden brown.
Drain on paper towel, but while still sizzling hot: sprinkle with salt, 
and sprinkle generously with coarse black pepper.

It is a lovely, cold night. The wind is brisk. Stars peek in and out of the blowing clouds. I sit on my back porch listening for the shivering call of the screech owl, who is in the barn tending to nightly owl business. I am trying to understand the little fellow who is sharing my life.

According to the literature, screech owls mate for life. Like all owls, they have immovable eyes, but can turn their heads three-quarters way around in both directions, without turning their bodies. They pull themselves up tall and slim, and make their eyes into slits to camouflage themselves. Their flight is silent because their plumage is extra soft. They cannot see in the dark, but their eyes are adapted for dim light.

Most of these things I have noticed in my owl, but it is owl ears that I find the most fascinating. The tufts on some owls' heads are not their ears. Owl ears have feathered flaps that they can close down completely and smooth to their heads. These flaps, when raised, become extended sound funnels that are directional and movable. An owl can scan in every direction and tell exactly where sounds, like squeaks of mice, come from. We creatures who survive on earth are all wonderfully made.

* * * My thistle feeder is a great success. The pine siskins and goldfinches pack their craws so full that they look as if they have little feathered balloons under their chins.

At times, all the sparrows at the feeder, as from some magic signal, will fly, simultaneously, up into the tree. At other times all of them will fly like a school of fish across the yard to the bushes. Who makes the decision, and who communicates the direction?

All gregarious birds seem to have this synchronized flight ability. Maybe any one bird can be the decision maker and they use the same method that the screech owl used with me in the barn when I stepped too close -- they give all their mates an electric zap. Perhaps the zaps are of different intensity for up, down and sideways directions.

It is interesting to consider questions of bird behavior. But, as always, it is their beauty that intrigues me the most. Oh, Lord of life on earth, what beauty you conceive and share!

Jean's book of ramblings and recipes "A Country Mile of Winter" and her book of poetry "The Earth's My Home" are available for $4.95 each plus $1.30 for postage and handling. Ten of Jean's favorite recipes will be included free with each book ordered. Order from...

Country Mile Publications
616 E. Monroe St.
Delphi, Indiana 46923

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