Reply
Wed 18 May, 2005 10:51 am
Quote:Like a scene from Hitchcock's thriller The Birds, great black grackles swooped down from magnolia trees in front of a downtown Houston building Monday, attacking pedestrians.
Turns out, like any animal, the aggressive birds were just protecting a young grackle that had fallen out of its nest.
Authorities eventually closed off a sidewalk in front of the County Administration Building.
"They were just going crazy," said Constable Wilbert Jue, who works at the building. "They were attacking everybody that walked by."
The grackles zeroed in on a lawyer who shooed a bird away before he tripped and injured his face, Jue said. The lawyer was treated for several cuts.
Another bird attacked a deputy county clerk.
"I hit him with a bottle," said Sylvia Velasquez. "The other birds came, and one attacked my blouse and on my back."
Two women came to help her after she fell to the ground, and the birds attacked them as well. The group ran into the building.
"This is a very Hitchcock kind of story. Very Tippi Hedren," said downtown worker Laura Aranda Smith, referring to one of the stars of The Birds.
Winnie Burkett, manager of the Houston Audubon Society sanctuary, said grackles will often take extreme measures to defend a young bird.
The great-tailed grackles are native to Mexico and South Texas but have spread to Houston, Burkett said. The males have long tails and are black with an iridescent sheen. They are 15-18 inches long and have a wingspan of 15-25 inches.
http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/state/11675655.htm
A number of years ago, I was working in my yard. Every time that I bent down, a mockingbird slammed me in the butt. Apparently, there was a nest nearby, and the bird was only protecting her territory. She was so persistent, that I was afraid to go into my yard until the nestlings flew the coop!
Good grief, Phoenix. My mom was a bird watcher and she hated grackles but I don't remember why.
Our cat named Murdoch (don't ask) lay quietly in our driveway while two bluejays swooped down and took turns (no not terns) giving him a vicious peck on the head. He never moved one whisker.
Sounds like something from The Omen. Very appropos for Bushs' home state.
I was sort of laughing as I tuned into this thread, but given the size of the birds, yikes, I stopped laughing.
Yet another edge of territory...
There are a number of birds that swoop down and then swat the back of one's head around here. Two years ago, some mockingbirds did it. As soon as their young left the nest, I tore down their homes. The following year, bluejays nested in the same spots and they attacked people.
Mockinbirds attack our cats whenever they traverse the open parts of the yard. Maine Coon fur is especially prized mockingbird nest material. Our one Coon who recently died would, when they started to attack him, just lay down and give out this pitiful squeaky Maine Coon cry until someone ran over and picked him up before the birds depilitated him. He was such a weenie for a 25 pound cat.
Too damn many grackles in Texas, anyway. They're so common in downtown Dallas that the locals identify them as "birds of Paradise" to unknowing visitors, so as not give the city a bad image. I've seen fairly large groups of them in front of the Galleria in Houston, too. They're fairly uncommon around here in New England, though you do see some from time to time. But we have blue jays. Oh, yes. A right smart of 'em.
Re: Grackles Attack Pedestrians in Houston
Phoenix32890 wrote:Quote:Like a scene from Hitchcock's thriller The Birds, great black grackles swooped down from magnolia trees in front of a downtown Houston building Monday, attacking pedestrians.
Turns out, like any animal, the aggressive birds were just protecting a young grackle that had fallen out of its nest.
Authorities eventually closed off a sidewalk in front of the County Administration Building.
"They were just going crazy," said Constable Wilbert Jue, who works at the building. "They were attacking everybody that walked by."
The grackles zeroed in on a lawyer who shooed a bird away before he tripped and injured his face, Jue said. The lawyer was treated for several cuts.
Another bird attacked a deputy county clerk.
"I hit him with a bottle," said Sylvia Velasquez. "The other birds came, and one attacked my blouse and on my back."
Two women came to help her after she fell to the ground, and the birds attacked them as well. The group ran into the building.
"This is a very Hitchcock kind of story. Very Tippi Hedren," said downtown worker Laura Aranda Smith, referring to one of the stars of The Birds.
Winnie Burkett, manager of the Houston Audubon Society sanctuary, said grackles will often take extreme measures to defend a young bird.
The great-tailed grackles are native to Mexico and South Texas but have spread to Houston, Burkett said. The males have long tails and are black with an iridescent sheen. They are 15-18 inches long and have a wingspan of 15-25 inches.
http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/state/11675655.htm
A number of years ago, I was working in my yard. Every time that I bent down, a mockingbird slammed me in the butt. Apparently, there was a nest nearby, and the bird was only protecting her territory. She was so persistent, that I was afraid to go into my yard until the nestlings flew the coop!
Well well a back door mockingbird....
I often sit in front of the apartments and watch mockingbirds attacking cats and squirrels. It's especially comical when the squirrel is in the middle of a high voltage line and the birds hit them all the way to the end.
I knew a mockingbird who memorized the summoning whistle for every dog on the block. He would lure well-trained dogs from one end of the street to the other, counterfeiting their owners calls.
Noddy24 wrote:I knew a mockingbird who memorized the summoning whistle for every dog on the block. He would lure well-trained dogs from one end of the street to the other, counterfeiting their owners calls.
I would love to smoke a joint and then watch that for awhile. Hilarious.
A dove in one of my wooden tray feeders responded to an aggressive grackle by pointing its own beak, puffing up its chest, and flapping its wings. The grackle flew away.
A number of years ago, a mockingbird swooped down at me every time I went out the back door. Finally I went out carrying a wadded white plasstic bag. As soon as the bird got close I thrust the bag at it. The bag blossomed open, frighteniong the bird away. It never came at me again.
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace