Goosed

[shanmonster]

I like to walk at night through the park. I avoid the yobs and head straight for the little island where the Canada geese have set up their daycare system. Four or five geese supervise dozens and dozens of gregarious goslings ranging from toddlers to teens. The cygnets and ducklings are much more shy, and I never see them at night. After my birthday party, a whole wack of party-goers went to the park, and I circled the flock and squatted down amongst the babies. I was promptly swarmed, and I reached out with care, stroking new feathers through old down. The goslings' chaperones watched warily, but didn't charge me. Instead, they bobbed their heads up and down, hissing a little every now and then, giving me that warning not to try anything stupid.

Young geese remind me of little dinosaurs. They run upright, threaten menacingly with clacking bills and serpentine necks, tipping their heads to the side to get a better view of me. Then they butt their heads at me, demanding food I do not have. Their unfinished wings stick out like T-Rex arms, and I get the impression I'm not the predator but the prey. When they decide I'm of no use to them, they wander off, and the click of beaks on grass sounds like freezing rain.

...

I'd better get ready. Lungs ready or not, I must teach dance soon.

Comments

dinos

[kmo.livejournal.com]

I keep chickens, and I frequently see little dromeosaurs looking back at me when I watch them.

[xhappyx.livejournal.com]

You are right! A lot of birds do look like dinosaurs

[prince-hring.livejournal.com]

Good heavens!

A few years ago I was watching adolescent geese, thinking: "They look like little dinosaurs."

I never thought I'd find anyone else who saw them the same way...

[sirgarrett.livejournal.com]

Ever since Jurassic park I've been completely sold on the Dinosaurs Became Birds concept. The similarities are uncanny and I've read/heard/overheard somewhere that there's new evidence the dino's were actually warm blooded making them even more like the modern bird.

But without feathers.

Or flight.

Unless you count falling from a cliff.