01 August 2012

Birds in the Excavator

I don't know what it is with the birds in West Virginia.  There are acres of wooded hills full of hollow trees and craggy branches which, one would think, would provide irresistible shelter for an expectant mother bird to make a nest in.  For millions of years, birds have been, through subtle genetic mutation, honing their behavior patterns to be in perfect survival synchrony with their natural environment.  So, I wonder, what sort of dumb-ass, bird-brained, idiotic feathered creature would ignore millennia of adaptive behavioral success and decide to make its nest in a giant, hot, bright orange painted, metal box which stinks of diesel fuel and hydraulic fluid?  Apparently such a bird lives in Morgan County, West Virginia.

The engine compartment (and bird house) of the Kubota excavator 

Baby birds waiting to be fed.  At least mom made the nest on the radiator side rather than the exhaust side.