For the past three years, here on Snake Mountain in Cornwall, a female
cardinal has tapped persistently on the windows daily from April till
late September/early October.  Most days she will tap steadily from
before sunup until well after sunset, with only minor pauses presumably
for finding enough feed to continue with her passion.

The first year it was annoying enough that we tried a variety of things
to dissuade her, but she would not be deterred and simply would move
from window to window.  The second year we didn't try any more, and she
settled on one window with just the right perching shrub for her liking;
and she has stayed with this window ever since.  This year when she
reappeared right on schedule in early spring, it was just like greeting
an old friend as the annual tapping began.  Even though the window is
right by the bedroom we hardly notice the tapping any more, instead
noticing the days without, during her incubation duties.

Ian
=======================

On 10/18/2018 11:58 AM, Jane Stein wrote:
> I had one of those years ago, resplendent male cardinal who perched on
> the arm of my car's rearview mirror, parked in a suburban parking lot,
> and spent hours and hours whacking the mirror.  Don't know whether
> it's low intelligence or out of control male hormones.  I swear there
> was a female looking on approvingly from a safe distance!  No clue why
> he picked my car out of the half dozen parked in the lot at the time...
>
> Jane
> (Shoreham)
>
>
> On 10/18/2018 9:32 AM, Scott Morrical wrote:
>> Then there was the male Northern Cardinal that kept violently
>> attacking its own reflection in our bedroom window, until it lay
>> senseless on the ground, only to recover and resume the attacks. 
>> This went on for days.  I’m not sure whether this is evidence of low
>> intelligence in Northern Cardinals specifically, or a more general
>> indictment of the Y chromosome.  As an XY, I can only hope for the
>> former.
>> Scott
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>> On Oct 18, 2018, at 9:17 AM, Barbara Brosnan <[log in to unmask]>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> Then there are the turkeys, often regarded as not the brightest
>>> light bulbs
>>> etc.  After a deep March snowfall four turkeys came in to our
>>> feeders and
>>> ate seeds on the ground.  However, one turkey wanted more so he
>>> jumped up
>>> high and slapped his head sideways on the feeder.  Seeds flew down
>>> to the
>>> ground and then he and the other three dined quite nicely.  He
>>> performed
>>> this maneuver over and over again.   Perhaps the other three put him
>>> up to
>>> it?  Or they drew straws???
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Barbara Brosnan
>>>
>>> Weybridge