Joann Merritt's Essays

Parking Lot Mystery Bird
November, 2006

Two years ago Chuck Henderson found a bird at MC (Midland College) which was probably a Poorwill. He found the bird on a cold wet dreary day in November. It was huddled on the handlebars of a bicycle on the MC parking lot and at first sight was not even recognizable as a bird, but when Chuck approached to see what the bedraggled object was, it took flight and disappeared into the landscape. Chuck’s mystery bird remained just that, at least as to species.

Now this year on a cold, but dry, dreary day in November niece Kathy was walking across the parking lot at MCM, Music City Mall, where the only vegetation in sight was a lone tumbleweed that had lodged against a fence. As she neared the weed, what looked to her like a small owl flew from his “Day’s Inn Roost” accommodations underneath the tumbleweed. When Kathy related this experience to me, I immediately thought of Chuck’s sighting. I showed her a picture of a Poorwill in flight showing that it looked much like a small owl. However, the name of Kathy’s bird also remains a mystery.

What is it with these birds and parking lots?? Perhaps there are more Poorwills spending the winter around here than we birders realize - but roosting in parking lots on handlebars and under weeds?? Come to think of it, the bright lights around these public places would attract numerous insects - have you read Why Moths Hate Thomas Edison? These sorts of areas would make excellent Fast Food Emporiums for over wintering Poorwills and could be easily accessed by just a few flaps of the wings!