There are two Robins that vie for supremacy in my garden. A rather neat and spic and span fellow (Loser) and a somewhat bedraggled example (Winner). Every morning, when I go out into the garden to refill the bird feeder (my late wife did it religiously, and I wouldn’t want to disappoint her), Winner arrives immediately; gets in my way; and generally demands breakfast, which I’m always glad to supply. But he does have to work for it. Here he is, waiting on the bird table…
Having set up the camera to capture the moment, today I went into the shed to fetch some nuts for him. Winner – the undoubted ‘top dog’ Robin in the local area – became impatient, and immediately hopped aboard the handy perch…
…and proceeded to watch my every move. Flitting over to the fence…
…he awaited my outstretched hand, which he knew was full of nuts. And, as usual, he flitted back; checked me out…
…hovered for a moment; snatched a nut; then scooted for the sanctuary of the tree…
This is his modus operandi. He touches down for a nanosecond, then puts as much distance between himself and I as he can – usually disappearing into an adjoining garden to devour his catch. He’ll do it as many times as I’m prepared to stand there, like a lemon, with an aching arm stretched out in front of me…
But I know that when he’s off over the fence, Loser grabs his opportunity with both feet. There he is, look – watching over my shoulder…
This is when he slips in unnoticed. More often than not he may get chased off by Winner, but when I feel his little talons grip my fingernails…
…for me he’s the real winner. After all he gets the time to select the best nut in my hand. And if he’s feeling choosey, he might even take a meal worm. Yum!
Tooty Nolan: Languishing Somewhere Between Clever and Stupid 