Regular readers may remember that I am fascinated by crows and ravens. I have a flock of crows that I feed, and they come to visit me each morning, then check in throughout the day to see if any new treats have appeared. They tolerate my staring at them out the window, and come very close. Sometimes they land not too far from me when I am outside. There are ravens here, but they are shy. If they see me behind the glass they flap off. I am always delighted to catch a glimpse of them, huge and shaggy looking, with massive beaks.
This morning, when I was feeding the poultry, I saw Chanel, the horse, drop and roll in the tattered snow. When she stood up I could see that she had left fist fulls of shedding hair behind. It was ruddy against the white. After I finished taking care of the poultry I fed and watered the rabbits, and threw a ball for Bravo until he was tired. Then I went back to where the hoof stock were eating and handed out some treats that I had hiding in my pocket. As I stood there, two ravens swooped in low. One continued on and landed in a tree.
The larger of the two stopped not 20 feet from me, where the pony had just rolled. My breath stopped in my lungs, and I froze. The bird strutted along, scooping up the hair that was spread across the snow. He (or she) soon had a beak full. It lifted off and landed in a tree, rearranging the hair until it was just right. I am delighted to think they are making a fine nest to raise their young, and that those chicks will be cozily tucked in with pony fuzz.
It was magical to me to have this great bird land so close to me, and gather up the fine, warm hair from my horse to cup inside their nest.
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