The living room has two excellent windows, one a large bay window facing front, the other sliding glass doors out to the side patio. These two vistas make up the two major channels of Beagle TV.
Out the bay window, facing the street, they get programs like “Attack of the FedEx Fiend,” and “Dead Dog Walking.” Out the sliding glass, which faces a small side yard and a stockade fence on which we have installed several bird feeders, and a growth of tall, bird-friendly sunflowers, they get some of their favorites. These include “Goldfinch Planet,” “Chipmunk Bachelor,” and “Squirrel Dynasty.”
The Posse has a series of beagle chants which serve as theme songs to alert the household which program is showing at any time. The trained ear can tell the difference, for instance, between a Finch Chanty and a Squirrel Jig.
A couple of mornings ago, an entirely new melody began to issue forth from the viewing platform on the arm of the love seat. A song so unusual that the Beagle Food Guy (as I'm known to them) had to go check out what was showing.
As I rounded into the room I noticed a total absence of any birds or squirrels at the feeders. Highly unusual on such a beautiful summer day. Still, it appeared that the team was flinging its wrath at the empty feeding stations.
Upon getting closer I spied the item in question. There, right on the edge of the feeder view, perched regally on the top of the fence, was the Prince of the Red Tail Hawks. Motionless except for the occasional turn and tilt of his royal head to cast a baleful eye upon the canines behind the glass. For their part, they were anxiously informing me, “This sure as hell ain't no Bluejay.”
As both the Posse and I took in the beak and talons, the lack of birds and squirrels in the vicinity seemed fully explained.
My arrival, and a couple of sharp commands quieted the Chanty, and the crew began an inspection/stare down encounter with the raptor.
At some point, some sort of predator-dar must have passed between all involved. The Posse met as a Committee of the Whole and concluded that there was a large sunspot on the carpet in the back room which contained naps that were going to waste. So they left on a mission of nap conservation.
A while later, the regal bird began to pump his great wings, and took off for places where the prey had not been warned away.
They are truly beautiful birds. But they are more beautiful without my 4 pound puppy in their clutches. They are invited to leave my neighborhood to find the place where wild bunnies roam.
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