Bird Frenzy
Pelicans, cormorants, and gulls combined in a mad feeding frenzy this morning, tracking a school of fish that erred into this part of the Bay. This is probably the annual herring migration that fisherpeople talk about, but obviously without being out there with a net among the fighting feathers it’s impossible to tell. What intrigues me about this bird riot is how they know the fish are there, and how they spread the news to their own and other bird families. I can understand how the more or less random flights of gulls and the fairly frequent hunting forays by Brown Pelicans could result in spotting the fish. But how do they get the news out? How, for example, did the cormorants get the word? There were more cormorants in this pack than I’ve seen on the North Basin in years. There is some kind of interspecies bird message system that needs scientific study. Or maybe it’s been done and I just don’t know it. Readers? Weigh in if you know.
