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June 16, 1994 - Singing the Praises of MockingbirdsJune 16, 1994 • The Suffolk Times • 7A Singing the Praises of Mockingbirds By Paul Stoutenburah The sun's been up for only a short time, but its brilliance has flooded the bedroom, telling me to get up and greet the day. The world we live in here, as far as light goes, is so much different than the world back at our winter house in the woods. There it takes the sun a long time to rise above the trees before it starts to radiate its wondrous glow. Normally I write out on the deck with the bay in front and the salt marsh in back, so I tried that this morning. The dew from last night is too heavy. Every- thing is covered with glistening beads of moisture. So I'll have to be satisfied to sit inside until the warming sun collects its jewels and dries out the Adirondack chair that makes for real comfort out on the deck. As I stood there in front watching the early sun start to take over the world, an already noisy crow was telling everyone he was on the prowl. I can imagine his hoarse call running shivers down the back of nesting birds, for it is this time of year those black marauders go hunt- ing for birds' eggs. Just yesterday when we visited our winter home nearby to do some much - needed garden work, we strolled through the little orchard we have down along the north side of the pasture. Pre- viously I'd found a red - winged black- bird's nest in one of the dwarf trees and so I casually looked in to see how the family was doing. There had been three eggs in the nest but I'm sorry to report that yesterday there were none. Disaster had struck. The nest was empty and there was no sign of the usual excited parents nearby. Crows Pilfer Nests I can remember, from previous years when we were not at the cottage and were able to observe the goings -on around our home in the woods, that of- ten we'd see crows pilfering nests as they methodically worked their way through the shrubs and trees that line the pasture edge. Usually there'd be the de- fenders trying to drive the robbers away, for crows are persistent and know how to evade the excited attackers while they do their dastardly deeds. Our resident Focus on Mature mockingbird here at the beach is too alert and too full of fight to let any crow get too close to her nest in a nearby small cedar tree alongside the cottage. It scolds us even when we go outside and heaven forbid if the neighbor's dog walks by. Then she'll go into her dive - bombing attack that will make Daisy move away. I can remember finding the first mockingbird nest, of this new arrival from the south, over on a Westhampton beach. It must have been at least 50 years ago. Since that first sighting "mockers" have moved into every seg- ment of our island, many staying year - round. All they need is a berry bush to supply their winter larder. What's given them the edge of survival here in the north is the now -wild multiflora rose that we see blossoming right now with its profusion of white flowers. This aggressive rose is not a native and was introduced by the conservation department as part of a packet of plants given out for wildlife habitat. Neither they nor anyone else ever thought that it would spread throughout the island as it has. It has invaded almost every open field and road edge and, yes, it's even in your own backyards, I'm sure. The conserva- tion department no longer offers these plants in their packets of wild shrubs and, as a matter of fact, it's unlawful in some states to even sell them. The plant will grow to an immense sire when left in the open and can actually take over an open field within a few years. The reason the multiflora rose is so prolific is because of its abundance of small, red berries. These make, as the conservation department originally in- tended, great winter bird food. Birds eat them, digest the fruit around the seed inside and then pass the seed through their bodies at will throughout the area. Now we have one of nature's perfect dispensers working for free. The seed travels through with the dropping of the bird, which now has its own fertilizer at- i_w��w ■_wwL �wwL 82 Years Ago June 15, 1912 Orient News: Two barges containing over 1,000 tons of stable manure have been unloaded at the Halyoake Farm. These barges were towed through the channel by the "Wal- ter Royal" and "Annex" of the farm fleet. Two more barges are expected. Hurrahh The Huntington Bulletin remarks: "Now, sit up and take notice, ye henpecked husbands. Read this and rejoice. Magistrate Joseph Fitch in Jamaica decides that the husband should be the head of the family and all the mem- bers of the family must do as he says in his house. If the wife desires to go out against her husband's wishes, he has the right to detain her, using necessary force." 50 Years Ago June 16, 1944 Farm Worker Wages Set: The Farm Wage Board for Suffolk County, which officially represents the War Food Administration, met with the Farm Bureau and a group of farmers this week and fixed the wages to be paid for imported farm help during the season. The wage schedule agreed on is as follows: field workers, 50 cents an hour; picking up potatoes, six cents per bushel; Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh DEWDROPS — Early- morning dewdrops lay down the leaves of the fine grasses each morning whenever we have warm days and cool nights. [ached to help it along when the warmer weather of spring arrives. It's then it's ready to sprout and is off and running. Each year we have more and more multiflora rose with more and more berries which enable more and more mockingbirds to survive through the winter. That's why almost every back- yard has its noisy, notorious singer telling the world it's a great place to live. Mockingbirds, as their name implies, are some of the very best imitators we have. Anyone who is the least familiar with birds realizes that here is a true master of the art of song. Usually heard from a high perch, he floods the area with his loud and varied calls. And, of course, he doesn't stop there. Some- times you'll hear him all night long, which can be quite annoying if you are trying to sleep. I once heard a mockingbird go through his repertoire that was abso- lutely amazing. There were bird calls from the tiniest chickadee through robin -size birds, eventually ending up with the coarse call of the crow inter- picking lima beans, 50 cents per bushel; picking string beans, 40 cents per bushel. These prices are only for imported labor such as prison- ers of war and the Jamaican labor that is to be brought to the county again this season. 25 Years Ago June 20, 1969 Letter of Appreciation: "As our final year at Greenport High School draws quickly to a close, we look back on it with joy and sad sentiment. When we think of all our activities, we recall the Saturday afternoon football games, the baseball games on those fresh spring afternoons and the golf and bowling matches. "We remember Eugene Mazzaferro and John Geier, whose efforts made possible our entire sports program. If they hadn't spent day and night procuring signatures for a petition to raise money for athletic activities, GHS would have had a less exciting year. These two benevolent men collected enough funds to reinstate a full interscholastic athletic program which would otherwise have been left out, due to our austerity budget. "Nothing can function without support, and we are grate- ful to the many of you who did back us with contributions." Sincerely, Colin Van Tuyl, president, Class of 1969 spersed with a variety of other bird calls. This little lesson on how an intro- duced plant, the multiflora rose, has up- set the natural community gives us a good example of how man is unknow- ingly changing the world around him. This world is changing ever so slowly, so slowly that most don't even realize it. All we can hope for is it will not change too radically so that we lose the wonder and charm of our wonderful East End.