Survival of the Fittest....

So here’s the story behind this photo. Two evenings ago I had gone for a walk and was crossing a small parking lot when a guy on roller blades comes zipping through while eating a slice of pizza. No sooner did I think to myself, that’s something you don’t see every day, that he tossed the half eaten pizza on the ground. Seriously, dude? Anyhow, as if on cue and seemingly out of nowhere a small colony of gulls swooped in (and yes, colony of seagulls are what they’re called; a Flock of Seagulls is the band). Living on the edge of one of the Great Lakes these birds are often around and—as with other urban wildlife—I find them interesting. And yes, someone reading this has fingers poised at their keyboard about type that they are nothing more than flying rodents (hmmm...who’s gonna be the first to say it), but they are actually very intelligent animals. When picking up small creatures or shellfish, for example, they will drop it from a height to kill it or crack it open, they sometimes stamp their feet on the ground after a rain to draw out worms, and they are one of the few animals which can drink both fresh and salt water. In short, they are survivors. What I find really interesting is that they are attentive parents to their young, they mate for life, and the male and females take turns incubating their eggs (source: onekindplanet.org). Anyhow, not having much to do or anyplace to go because of the pandemic and all, I stood and watched the battle for a few minutes and it was beautiful. Eventually a gull swooped out of the sky (who I’ve named Jonathan Livingston) and in one swift motion grabbed the entire piece of pizza, or what was left of it, and flew away before they others could even follow. Survival of the fittest. There have been days when I’ve felt like swooping in on a pizza.