While on balcony and talking on the phone this afternoon, I was surprised to see a hummingbird sitting boldly on a branch, a scant few feet out of reach. She regarded me without apparent fear, turning her head slightly this way and that, blinking, and fluffing her breast feathers. After what seemed a long time of mutual observation, I stepped away from her, and she shot off in a wild trajectory up and then back down amongst the branches.

Perhaps she thought I wouldn’t be able to track her sudden course, but I have millions of years of predatory ancestors guiding my vision, so I saw her arrive at her nest. She fed the two tiny chicks in the nest, unaware of my continued viewing.

…

Walking home, I saw a crow chasing an indignant seagull away. I’ve seen crows chase hawks, but never a seagull. I tend to think of gulls as being more graceful fliers, and crows as being more acrobatic, but both birds were engaging in rapid, erratic flight. After a hundred-meter chase, the crow returned to what I’m assuming must have been its mate, and probably nesting site.

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Apropos wings, I’ve seen more hummingbird moths in the garden this year than I think I’ve seen in all previous years combined. And the golden male carpenter bees as well.