By Joan Wilson

“Ching
Chings”

I refer to an article in the ‘Caymanian Compass’ "Crows prove they are no birdbrains". I must agree 100% that birds have some kind of insight to access and solve the problem of extracting food from whatever.

Have
you ever watched a ching ching?

I
mean really quietly watched a ching ching with shiny black feathers
that gleam?

These
birds are so shiny and clean.

*

Perhaps
you've seen them swoop down for a bite or maybe from tree to tree in
flight

But
from where I'm sitting in my garden swing I've watched these
feathered friends do their thing.

First
of all I note they're inquisitive and cautious

They
don't come too close to any of us

So each day I'm entertained from my garden patio

These
ching chings always put on a first class show.

Whether
it's just an ordinary bath they're having

Or
trying to steal the dog's food while he's sleeping

And
in my moments of quiet bird watching

I've
seen a few things that's really worth sharing.

*

Take
a simple dry almond that is under the tree

Getting
the seed out is difficult for you and me

But
not for the ching ching - they're a lot smarter

They
pick it up from the ground and soak it in the water.

They
know one end of the seed is soft and easy to enter

They
just clip off this end to get to the center and there's the seed just
as he suspected

Two
or three pecks with his beak and the seed is soon extracted.

And
when they catch a small lizard or a bug to eat

They
drown them first before commencing their treat

And
they get so annoyed when the bath has no water

With
their feathers all ruffled they want it now not later

So
imagine how interesting it is watching these ching chings

In
the quiet moments in my garden swing.