A Plea for tiny Birds

Shirley, one of our neighbours, appeared on the doorstep, almost in tears, with a tiny little trauma victim wrapped up in her scarf. She had rescued a white-winged crossbill, a pretty little bird that weighs in at less than an ounce. These birds flock in the boreal forest, eating conifer cones -- as many as 3,000 seeds a day. No birds have teeth, and all birds collect grit to help them grind up their food, and these little fellows are no different. Come winter, grit can be hard to find. Until the sand truck goes past, spreading a smorgasbord on the road, not just of grit, but of salt.

The problem is, the tiny little forest birds just don't understand vehicles. And people are in a hurry. And a flock of small birds on the road is no match for a truck. Shirley had come on a scene of carnage -- a banquet for the jubilant crows that were sitting in the trees beside the road harvesting the feast, but a very upsetting sight for most of the rest of us.

She rescued two -- this little crossbill, and a nuthatch, both of them stunned. Brought them back to Nancy's house, where they were put into intensive care. (Nancy seems to run a sanctuary for injured wildlife!) The nuthatch recovered first and was less than happy with being handled, making his displeasure loudly known. The crossbill took a bit longer, but she also recovered and both birds went safely back to the wild.

Shirley was incensed with the drivers plowing through the flocks, and wanted to post big signs saying "slow down." She's absolutely right, and has the high moral ground. These are little lives sitting in the middle of the road, and we should slow down to keep them safe.

Crossbills are amazing. They can breed year round, depending on food supply, and specialize in eating the cones of trees like spruce and tamarack and cedar (shown in the picture). Small cones, tightly packed, and hard to open for most birds fall open for these birds with their specialized beaks. Note how the bill crosses -- and then consider that this bill would let the bird only feed in one direction on the cones (sort of like trying to use scissors with the wrong hand).

Birds with the lower mandible crossing to the right are about three times more common than those whose lower mandible crosses to the left (as does our little lady's) -- but this diversity means that some birds can nibble their way around one side of the cone while the birds with the bill crossed the other way can nibble their way around the opposite side of the cone.

They have adapted beautifully to their environment. Except for one thing. Us.
Slow down. Take care. Share the road -- or at least the sand spread on it.