[February 2004 journal entry]
Re ‘community’ ( in Birds & Blooms, December/January 2004) –
“One New Year’s Day, a large Canada goose landed in our snow-covered garden. It appeared to have been shot. One leg was limp from the knee down, and it looked exhausted. I left the goose some food and water so it wouldn’t have to move. After several days, the large bird let me rub an antibiotic on its leg. The bird sat in my flowerbed the whole time, and the rest of the gaggle waited at the edge of the creek, encouraging it to continue the journey. They’d chirp and grunt, each of them taking turns repeating the same sounds – like they were crooning a familiar song for comfort. One morning, I saw the injured goose standing on both feet. It preened and stretched, called to the group near the creek and took off. Once airborne, the rest of the flock joined it until they formed a perfect ‘V’, with the injured bird flying in the rear position. I was amazed that this entire ‘community’ postponed its southward flight to wait for one bird’s recovery – and impressed that they placed it in the least strenuous position when they left.”
