FSO–Flags

This Friday our theme is Flags. The words around this theme focus on the United States where they have National Flag Day, June 14th.

I’m tempted to flag it because New Zealanders are not a flag waving people.  Mention the flag these days and someone will want to debate whether it should be changed, whether it reflects New Zealand as the nation it is today.  And I certainly don’t want to get into that debate.

But I got lucky yesterday.  We had international flags flying at work last week (I was too busy to take photos) and at the end of the event the flags were shoved into a basket and had become crumpled.  I offered to bring them home and hang them on the clothesline to get out the wrinkles before we store them away.  I pegged them up as they came out of the basket.  China beside Wales.  The Chinese flag featured a dragon during the Qing Dynasty, so there is a connection.

Great Britain beside Japan.  There are no rules in my back yard.

I really like the flag of Argentina although I think the smiley face is taking a few liberties with the sun.

And here’s my flag of my homeland, Australia

The remainder are a few I’ve taken around the north.

  

And finally, a very practical flag.  I made my grand-daughters these flags to wave above their heads in an effort to distract an attacking magpie during their nesting season.

You will find the flag photos from the rest of the tFSO team here.

You will find the flag photos from the rest of the FSO team here.

Magpies

I love magpies. I realize I am in the minority. They are not generally loved in NZ, in fact they are more often than not regarded as pests. I feel sorry for any animal that has been introduced from another country (Magpies were introduced to New Zealand in the 1860s from Australia to control pastoral insect pests) and then they are despised and hunted when they don't assimilate with the native creatures and habitat. It's not their fault! The possum is a better example of this but the magpie has its share of detractors too.
My son is a major magpie hater. He gets upset when he sees them attacking native birds but I argue they do far less harm than rats and cats do.

From early July through to Oct/Nov, during their breeding season they often attack (dive bomb) children, cyclists, farmers and runners. I've been a near victim in the past but I just moved as quickly as I could away from that area and avoided it for a month or two afterwards.

Magpies are nesting in the big old tree right beside where my grand-daughters get on and off the school bus. And they are becoming more and more aggressive. Actually, only the males attack (the females are too busy sitting on the eggs).
If two of the girls are walking up the drive and the other one is walking along the road to come to my place when they get off the bus, he will swoop at one then swiftly fly across to attack the others, then back again and so on until the little one is safe inside and the other two are far enough away to allay his fears. He has hit the youngest one on the head a number of times.

I try to explain he is only doing what comes naturally, being a good father, defending his family, keeping danger away from them.

Interestingly, most magpies which attack people on foot attack the same few individuals over and over again. If they attack others, it’s probably a case of mistaken identity. These magpies may have had an early traumatic experience – perhaps someone who looked like these people had harmed the magpies chicks, or even 'rescued' a fledgling, something the parent mistook as predation. Magpies are able to recognise and remember individual human faces, even if the person wears different clothes! I think they can sense fear. Krystal turns to see if the attacker is coming but he doesn’t attack her. He targets Shayde and Georgia who shriek and run.

And they can tell the time and so these guys will know exactly when the school bus is due to go past.
I remember reading somewhere that a flag flying behind the head will sometimes distract an attacking magpie, so I’ve made the girls a flag each. I think they are meant to be orange but didn’t have any orange material, gold was the closest I could find.


Here’s hoping they work. I’d hate the girls to grow up frightened of magpies.