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| Bird populations are declining — a staggering loss of 3 billion breeding adults, or nearly 30 percent of the population, in just a half century. —The Washington Post, January 17, 2024 |
Say, in your hurry,
you fail to notice
that the flocks of doves
and sparrows are gone
from the sidewalks—
until a ding on your phone
distracts you from work
with the news that all
the doves and sparrows
are gone from the city,
no sign of where they went,
the searches for stragglers
having come to nothing,
the mayor expressing
his worry about what
their sudden disappearance
might portend, birdseed
scattered everywhere
to no avail, many
quoted as saying
the loss improves
the city, many responding
with angry lament,
hours spent online
finding the best videos
of cooing and belatedly
learning to distinguish
different kinds of sparrows,
then as time passes
the ongoing debate
about what to do
becoming of less
and less concern
to you and everyone else
in a hurry…
William Aarnes lives in New York.
