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   (Plain Press November 2024) Birds are generally not scary. It seems to most that the only thing to fear of birds beside the “Bird Flu” is parking your car under a tree. Unless one has seen the Alfred Hitchcock motion picture “The Birds,” it would be difficult to convince someone to be fearful of our flying feathered friends. Watching birds has been known to comfort the soul. They chatter and sing as they seek out their food. They can remind people of living a simpler life instead of subscribing to unhealthy pursuits.

   It is believed that there are over 10,000 species of birds ranging in size from 2 inches to 9 feet. Over the centuries, many different species of birds have managed to adapt to human residences. This relationship between birds and humans can be mutually profitable, with each benefiting from the other.

   Many bring attention to the menacing dangers that society produces against birds. Unfortunately, this can easily overlook threats birds pose to humans. Besides the “West Nile Virus,” the common city bird is also known to carry as many as 60 different diseases just in their droppings.

   Did you realize that blue jays, magpies, and ravens all belong to the crow family? Or how about that crows can mimic the voices and sounds of other animals in the forests? In addition, these birds not only can remember humans by facial recognition for over two years, but they also use this information to communicate with other crows on how to deal with the individual. The cute little sparrows that nest in our neighborhood trees were introduced into the United States in 1851. We have become accustomed to thinking of these birds as harmless and not something to be wary of. However, these less threatening birds are known to carry bed bugs, salmonellae, and other parasites. Many of these diseases are airborne, which can be transmitted to humans just by being in close vicinity of the bird droppings. Our local pigeons carry candidiasis which can cause yeast infections in a woman’s mouth and urogenital tract, while diseases carried by starlings can affect the human central nervous system.

   To learn more about these things related to our feathered neighbors and more, watch “When Birds Attack”, Mondays at 9 pm, on Spectrum Channel 1025 (Cleveland Community Access Corporation) and Cox Cable Channel 45 Friday, at 8pm. For additional information, you can call: 216-534-7968 or email: Kevin@ShockerEnterprises.com