June 17, 2010: Sy Montgomery's Birdology

>> Rooney: SHE'S ALSO BEEN

CALLED THE BEST INTERPRETERER OF

ALL TIME AND THE AUTHORED 15

BOOKS FROM TIGERS TO PIGS AND

NOW TURNS HER PASSION TO

CREATURE OF FLIGHT IN BIRDOLOGY.

HERE'S OUR CONVERSATION WITH

HER.

>> YOU DISCUSS ALL KINDS OF

BIRDS FROM CHICKENS TO HUMMING

BIRDS AND HAWKS AND COCKATOOS

AND BIRDS.

PEOPLE ALWAYS THINK CHICKENS ARE

NOT INTELLIGENT AND YOU SAID

THEY HAVE PERSONALITIES AND

ATTRACTED TO PEOPLE THEY LIKE.

>> OURS SHOW YOU RIGHT WAY THEY

HAVE PERSONALITIES AND RECOGNIZE

YOU AND THE NEIGHBORS AND FOR

INSTANCE, THEY LOVE OUR NEXT

DOOR NEIGHBORS SO MUCH THAT WHEN

YOU HEAR BOBBY AND JARVIS'S DOOR

SLAM THEY RUN ACROSS THE YARD

THEIR WINGS FLAPPING TO GET

FASTER TO GET A TREAT AND GET

PETTED.

THEY LISTEN FOR THEIR DOOR TO

SLAM AND SOMETIMES BOBBY AND

JARVIS HAVE TO SNEAK OUT OF

THEIR HOUSE IF THEY DON'T WANT

MOBBED BY CHICKENS BUT THEY

DON'T FEEL THAT WAY ABOUT

ANYBODY.

THE NEIGHBORS THEY DON'T CARE

ABOUT BUT THE CHICKENS KNOW

ALOT.

YOU HEAR ABOUT THE PECKING

ORDER.

IT'S MORE ABOUT ORDER THAN

PECKING.

IT MATTERS TO THEM WHO'S WHO AND

THE AVERAGE CHICKEN CAN

RECOGNIZE AT LEAST ANOTHER 100

CHICKENS AND PEOPLE AND LOOK AT

THEM THE SAME WAY WE DO BY

LOOKING AT THE FACE.

>> YOU SAY THERE'S A FACIAL

RECOGNITION.

EVEN WHEN YOU CHANGE STUDIES

HAVE DONE THEY CHANGED A

CHICKEN'S APPEARANCE AND

MODIFIED IT AND THEY CAN STILL

DISTINGUISH WITH ALTERATIONS.

>> THE SCIENTISTS ARE ALWAYS

DOING THESE THINGS PUTTING A

FAKE COMB ON A CHICKEN BUT WHEN

THEY PULLED OUT FEATHERS BUT THE

MINUTE YOU MESS WITH THEIR FACE

IS WHEN THEY START GETTING

CONFUSED.

>> THE OTHER INTERESTING THING

YOU TALK ABOUT IS YOU CAN

DIFFERENTIATE LANGUAGE WITH

CHICKENS WITH THE CLUCKS.

>> OH, YES, ABSOLUTELY.

>> NOT JUST SCIENTISTS BUT YOUR

FRIEND CAN RECOGNIZE IT AS WELL.

>> I HAVE ANOTHER FRIEND WHO

OFTEN GIVES A HAWK WARNING TO

THE CHICKENS AND THEY ALL LOOK

RIGHT UP LOOKING FOR THE HAWK.

>> HOW DOES SHE DO THAT?

I'M NOT ASKING TO YOU MIMIC IT

BUT...

>> THEY SAY VERY SPECIFICALLY

WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT.

THEY DON'T JUST SAY THERE'S

TROUBLE.

CHICKENS ARE TELLING THEIR FLOCK

MATES WHAT KIND OF TROUBLE IT

IS, AN AERIAL PREDATOR AND LOOK

UP OR A GROUND PREDATOR AND KNOW

TO LOOK OUT THERE AND SOMEBODY

APPROACHING AT HIGH SPEED AND

EVEN GIVE YOU THAT INFORMATION.

>> IT ALL HAS TO DO WITH THE

SPEED OF THE SOUND AND WHETHER

IT'S HIGH OR LOW.

>> YEAH.

IT'S NOT EXACTLY WORDS BUT MUCH

LIKE OUR WORDS.

BIRDS DO HAVE A SORT OF

LANGUAGE.

IT'S JUST THAT ALTHOUGH PARROTS

FOR EXAMPLE, CAN SPEAK IN

ENGLISH MEANINGFULLY TO YOU AND

ME WE HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT

EVERYTHING THEY'RE SAYING.

>> I WAS FASCINATED BY YOUR

CHAPTER AND HUMMING BIRDS AND

BASICALLY THEY'RE LITTLE POCKETS

OF AIR AND NOT OF TO THEM AND

THEIR FEATHERS WEIGH MORE OF THE

REST OF THEIR BEINGS.

>> THAT'S TRUE OF JUST ABOUT ALL

BIRDS NOT PENGUINS BUT HUMMING

BIRDS REALLY ILLUSTRATE THIS

BEAUTIFULLY BECAUSE NOT ONLY ARE

THEY THESE LITTLE HOLLOW BEINGS

--

>> INCLUDING HOLLOW BONES.

>> AND HUMMING BIRDS HAVE NINE

AIR BLADDERS INSIDE OF THEM.

THEY'RE NOTHING BUT AIR IN THERE

EVEN THEIR SKULLS ARE SCAFFOLDED

TO MAKE THEM LIGHT.

>> AND THEY HAVE EXCEPTIONALLY

LONG TONGUES.

>> THE HUMMING BIRD'S TONGUE

WRAPS AROUND IT'S TONGUE.

PEOPLE THINK IT'S STRAW BUT IT'S

NOT.

THEY'RE NOT SUCKING STUFF UP

THEY'RE USING THEIR TONGUE

ALMOST AS A BRUSH AND BOY DO YOU

WISH YOU CAN EAT LIKE A HUMMING

BIRD AND JUST THE NECTAR ALONE

EATS ABOUT 600 INSECTS AND IF WE

ATE THAT MUCH WE'D BE ABLE TO

EAT 6,000 CALORIES A DAY.

>> AND YOU CORRECTED ME ON

SOMETHING AND A THINK THIS IS A

COMMON MYTH YOU TALK ABOUT

RESCUING HUMMING BIRDS WHICH IS

DIFFICULT BECAUSE THEY ARE SO

FRAGILE BUT YOU TALK ABOUT HOW

PEOPLE CAN TOUCH BIRDS AND PUT

THEM BACK IN THE NEST AND

THERE'S NO -- I ALWAYS THOUGHT

THE PARENT BIRD WOULD SMELL ME

ON THE BIRD AND WOULD ABANDON

THE NEST BUT YOU SAY THAT'S NOT

TRUE.

>> BUT THERE ARE SOME

EXCEPTIONS, OF COURSE VULTURES

THEY HAVE AN EXCELLENT SENSE OF

SMELL AND NOW WE KNOW PIGEONS

CAN SMELL AND MAY USE SMELL AS A

CUE TO GET TO WHERE THEY'RE

GOING AND REMEMBER HOW TO GET

FROM POINT A TO B.

>> ALSO ABOUT PIGEONS, I'LL ASK

YOU THIS ABOUT HAWKS TOO WE KNOW

THE BIRDS HAVE GREAT VISION BUT

I DIDN'T REALIZE HOW GREAT AND

YOU TALKED ABOUT IN YOUR BOOK

THERE HAVE BEEN STUDY HAS IT

PIGEONS CAN TELL A DIFFERENCE

BETWEEN A MONET AND MANET

PAINTING.

>> THEY OUTPERFORMED GRADUATE

STUDENTS.

IT'S FABULOUS.

BIRDS ARE SO SMART AND GIFTED

WITH EXTENSIONS OF THE SENSES WE

COULD ONLY DREAM ABOUT HAVING

AND BIRDS PROBABLY SEE COLORS

THAT WE DON'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT.

AND THEIR COLORS PROBABLY

SHIMMER IN THE WAY THAT HUMMING

BIRDS FEATHERS SHIMMER TO US AND

THINK HOW MUCH RICHER A BIRD IS

HAVING.

>> WHAT IS THEIR VISUAL

EXPERIENCE?

SO OFTEN WE SEE THE FLICKING

MOTION OF THE HEAD.

WHY ARE THEY DOING THAT?

>> THE HURKY JERKY WAY THEY MOVE

IS TO KEEP THEIR EYES STILL

BECAUSE THEY HAVE JUST ONE AREA

OF PERFECT FOCUS BUT TWO IN THE

EYE AND SOMETIMES THEIR HEAD IS

TRYING TO STAY STILL.

I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT WAS

AMAZING.

>> YOU SPENT SO MUCH TIME WITH

BIRDS DURING THE COURSE OF YOUR

RESERVE AND THE BOOK IS THERE

SOMETHING FUNDAMENTAL AND YOU

SAID YOU ALWAYS HAD AN INTEREST

BUT IS THERE SOMETHING YOU

LEARNED IN ALL YOUR RESEARCH?

>> MAYBE THE MOST WONDERFUL

THING THAT I'VE LEARNED AND

RELEARNED IS JUST THE SENSE OF

AWE.

HERE ARE THESE CREATURES THE

MOST COMMON WILD CREATURES THAT

EVERYONE SEES EVERY DAY YET IT'S

SO EASY TO TAKE THEM FOR GRANTED

SO BY GOING OUT AND HAVING THESE

SEVEN ADVENTURES WITH BIRDS I'M

TRYING TO REDEFINE THEM IN A WAY

THAT RESTORES THE BOTH SENSE OF

AWE AND COMPANIONSHIP.

>> I LEARNED SO MUCH READING

THIS.

THERE'S SO MUCH TRIVIA AND

INTERESTING THINGS.

BIRDOLOGY, THANK YOU FOR COMING.

>> WHAT A PLEASURE.

>> Rooney: THANKS JARROD.

THAT'S IT FOR "GREATER BOSTON."

A REMINDER TO TUNE INTO WGBH AT

NOON TOMORROW AND JOIN US FOR A

WEEK IN REVIEW FOLLOWED BY KELLY

CROSBY AT 1:00.

TOMORROW IS BEAT THE PRESS AND

ABBY CUMBERLAND'S SAILING

MISSION AND STAY TUNED FOR A

LIVE EDITION OF "BASIC BLACK."