A pigeon nearly got a free ride from Aldgate to Uxbridge yesterday morning. Only a day after I recall having the thought, "With all the birds wandering around this platform, I wonder if one has ever gotten on the train," there, as if on cue, was the little gray adventurer--brave or stupid?--hopping his way through the carriage as though scoping out the best seats. A fellow passenger also noticed, and we joined in an unspoken pact to save this pigeon from his own foolishness.
I opened the train doors, as we were merely sitting at the platform waiting for departure several minutes hence. Tried to steer him toward the open door. Of course, this just made him move further down the carriage. I thought at this point that my efforts were in vain, so I gave up, saying "Stupid bird--he's going to Uxbridge," and sat down, in an uncharacteristically un-heroic gesture from one who routinely chases flies and moths around the room just to capture and release them back to nature.
My fellow passenger, however, was more tenacious and managed to encourage the stowaway back towards--and out of--the waiting door. I gave her a nod of approval and then felt slightly foolish for giving up so soon.
It got me thinking about wildlife in urban areas, London specifically. I'd heard much about the foxes which apparently plague the city, but didn't see one for months. And then, within the space of several weeks I spotted a couple out my window in the early morning, and one literally by the side of the pavement looking not so well. Some neighbors were calling for assistance.
I've always felt ambivalent about this issue of wildlife in cities. Even not so urban streets that cut through major animal traffic areas and leave a legacy of carnage strewn along the roadside--I ask myself what right have we to motor our vehicles at top speed through the places which once allowed critters to roam freely and safely (that is, until another predator snatched them up, I suppose). Still, these things bother me.
Here in London, it is mostly pigeons that one encounters, although I have seen squirrels around Harrow, and magpies and a few other small bird species almost anywhere there's a green space. And if one goes South to Brighton or other seaside towns, you will find the most aggressive seagulls you've ever encountered. While roaming Hampstead Heath, I even saw some rats (the cousins of whom can be spotted on Underground tracks between train arrivals).
I suppose as long as humans insist upon settling and building on formerly natural areas, we are destined to share our home with the wilder element. In some ways I don't mind all that much. In fact, I rather like the spontaneity it affords when a butterfly unexpectedly breezes across my path or a gull provides free entertainment by dive-bombing an unsuspecting visitor's open food tray.
Or when a pigeon makes a valiant, yet ultimately unsuccessful attempt to accompany me on my tedious morning commute.
---
avian rider,
is going by Underground
faster than flying?
No comments:
Post a Comment