To the south lies Big Pond. Its shape is almost square and two sides are lined with loblolly pine trees while the other two sides are open, with grassy banks. The pond, and its surroundings, is teaming with wildlife. There are tadpoles, by the hundreds, maybe even thousands, and the water ripples constantly from their continual dance to the surface for a gulp of air. A piece of bread, tossed on the water's surface, reveals a flurry of hungry sunfish. Sometimes, the bread is bigger than the fish and they will gang up, to tug off a tiny morsel.
There are lots of turtles and they look like the kind many of us baby boomers had as a pet, until someone came along and said we could get salmonella from them. Most of these turtles are bigger than those we plucked from an aquarium in a department store, many moons ago, and they scramble to the water when they hear someone, or thing, approaching. But, they are curious creatures, as they will usually resurface just a few feet from the shore, to see what all the racket was about.
The loblollies are alive with grey squirrels. Since the trees grow so close together, a squirrel chase can go on...and on.....and on. There are countless species of birds, some familiar and some not and their morning chorus masks the fact that a large metropolis surrounds their woodland habitat. Among the birds are red shouldered hawks that call out to each other as they navigate the maze of tree limbs, like skilled fighter pilots, usually looking for a lower species of their genus, for a meal.
Big Pond has ducks, the occasional heron and Canadian geese. According to the locals, the pair of geese who have claimed Big Pond as their own, have been here for a long time.
All these creatures, in this small space, live in harmony....for the most part. But, Spring has sprung and with its arrival has come the time for the birds and bees to do their thing and bring new life into the world. With the geese, it is a time of much honking and staking out their territory. Even though the pair of geese on Big Pond have been together for several seasons, that does not discourage a new, younger, suitor from taking his chances of luring Ms. Goose away or taking Big Pond for himself.
For the casual observer, this is the only time to be able to distinguish the male from the female. Mr. Goose has no intentions of being de-throned and if a newbie is brave enough to put his webbed foot onto the surface of Big Pond, it is a declaration of war.
Geese have a tendency to be a bit crabby, but when it's nesting season, all rules and regulations, pertaining to geese, go right out the window.
Mr. Goose is a fighter and has obviously picked up some good techniques during his lifetime. This was a certainty when we watched him nearly drown his most recent challenger. When Mr. Goose returned to his beloved, in a most victorious mode, he extended his long neck and gave off a sound that was reminiscent of the long, plastic, raspberry horns......my Dad blew one of those at a referee during a basketball game one time....which resulted in him receiving a technical from said referee......but, that is blog fodder for another day. Anyway, with another notch in his wing, Mr. & Ms. Goose honked together, to let it be known, Big Pond was still theirs and Ms. Goose wasn't going anywhere.
The human race could learn a lot by observing the law and order in the natural world. Instead, man saw fit to put a honking mechanism on his mode of transportation and the blaring of horns are used for many a triumphant acclamation. I discovered this first hand the other day, when I made a right turn on a red light. The maneuver was perfectly legal and I was sure I had checked all manner of traffic flow. Obviously I missed one, because no sooner had I turned, a young woman in a little car was right on the back bumper of the truck, laying on the horn. I honestly do not know where she came from, but she was making sure I knew she was there. I glanced in the rear view mirror and she was still honking at me. She finally threw both arms up in disgust, while mouthing some indistinguishable words, and swerved into the next lane. As she got next to me, the idea of telling her she was number one crossed my mind, but I thought better of it. I just want to get along with folks..... and still keep my piece of the pond.
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