One recent morning as I was waking up and walking to the kitchen to make my morning coffee, I saw movement on the deck. So I went over, moved the curtain and found myself staring at two black vultures a few feet from the door.
They, of course, startled me but not because I was afraid they’d attack or do something like that. I’m very familiar with vultures and know that they’re usually only around a certain place if there’s something dead there to eat. So as soon as I got the coffee brewing, I went out to look but found nothing.
When I went out onto the deck, the two vultures moved but only to its edge. And then I saw several more on the roof and a few more in a yard tree. And for about the next half hour that’s where they all stayed in spite of my trying to chase them away.
However, around 8:30 a.m., they all lifted up and flew away, and they haven’t been on the deck or in the yard since. So I’m assuming that for unknown reasons this flock roosted here instead of further down in the trees along the fencerow.
Vultures, both turkey vultures and the less common black vultures, normally roost in flocks at night. And often they’ll roost on people houses. Eventually they usually move away, although I’m sure some people reading this had to drive them off themselves.
It’s only been since the early 20th century that black vultures have nested this far north. Turkey vultures, though, have done so since the mid-1800s. But still today, most black vulture nesting takes place in the southeastern portion of the state, while turkey vultures can be found statewide.
This vulture experience didn’t upset me, probably because I’ve been involved with raptors for more than 40 years. But most people don’t like vultures and some even believe that seeing them close to home means something awful will happen.
Ancient history shows that vultures played a big part in many different religions. Egyptian pharaohs considered them sacred and the Turks drew frescos of them on cave walls. And even today there are people who attach all kinds of spiritual meanings, some good and some ridiculous, to seeing a flock of them in the sky. I just look at them as birds that clean up a lot of the deceased animals we humans produce.
Now that it’s Memorial Day, most breeding birds have returned to their summer locations. Species easily recognized, like kingfishers, are along big and small creeks and gray catbirds and house wrens are in just about everyone’s yard.
Flowers also easily recognized, the roses and peonies, are open all over the place. Commonly grown peonies are hybrids of originals that date back as far as 1000 BC in China. Back then, though, obviously the state of Indiana wasn’t around, but these days peonies are its state flower.
Currently along the road on our property, David’s poppy/cornflower garden is looking beautiful. People think those poppies are perennials, but he replants a new crop every early fall. Occasionally someone trespasses and grabs some poppies, but they’ll be disappointed when they see that poppy flowers only last a day.
Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.
Ad Choices