寫完了火龍果來寫寫後院最近的蜂鳥。

 

幾個星期前，後院的Aloe vera抽出花莖，幾朵稀疏鍾鈴似的小花苞開始綻放。一日，見一隻蜂鳥舞動著翅膀吮吸著花瓣深處可憐的一點點花蜜, 心中頓生一絲憐憫。想起了很多年前蜂鳥在後院築巢生寶寶, 我還自稱是鳥外婆。後來周遭的環境越來越惡劣，雖然還有兩三次蜂鳥來築巢的，但是都可能因為有鷹，有老鼠這樣的天敵，蜂鳥寶寶都夭折。同時也想起家中好像還收著一個塑料的蜂鳥糖水容器。

 

又過了一些天，在車庫裏找到了那個泛黃發舊的容器，容器的頂端因為刷子夠不著，洗不去的汙垢已經成為容器的一部分，不過這不會影響糖水的幹淨的。上周五快下班時，往洗淨的容器裏灌入濃濃的糖水，掛在了架子上。一兩個小時後，一隻飛來的蜂鳥就發現這個紅色底盤、上麵點綴著四朵小黃花用作出水口的容器。隻見蜂鳥圍著仔細端詳了一陣，還查看了掛在一旁的風鈴，確認後最後一頭紮下去猛吸了十幾口。我高興地看著，搬來相機拍著，那個周末去Costco給女兒買東西，還帶回了一大包10磅的白糖，心想，這下夠它們喝一陣了。

 

我是個怕狗怕貓之人，沒有養過寵物，也不想有太多的情感牽掛。養過九個月的雞，還記得養雞時的牽腸掛肚和忙碌。養狗養貓很容易養出感情，我不想被這種感情所左右，不喜歡太多的牽絆，隻想過簡簡單單平平淡淡的生活。那日掛起糖水時還很得意自己的舉措，蜂鳥是屬於天空，而它們又會每天來我家，這樣的"寵物"多好，它自由我自由。

 

然而接下來的一幕又讓我大跌眼鏡。一兩天後，發現有一隻蜂鳥想獨霸這糖水，凡是前來想喝糖水的蜂鳥都被它阻攔、被它攻擊。為此，後院失去了往日的寧靜。兩/三隻蜂鳥吵啊叫啊打啊，不可開交，互不相讓，誰也不服誰。那架勢很凶的，嘰嘰喳喳吵，空中窮追不舍，嗖嗖飛過，振動的翅膀呼呼響。有時，兩隻鳥拍著翅膀快速地直線上升又直線下滑，然後彼此在空中猛烈撞擊，飛行速度之快，叫聲之尖銳，音頻之急促讓人驚歎不已。那隻小小的蜂鳥很霸道，好像這糖水罐是它的一樣，時不時停在附近的枝條上或高高的火龍果枝條上，大有占山為王的架勢。

 

周日晚上見它這般模樣，我還笑了，心想這鳥為了口吃的夠拚的，好一副名正言順"這糖水是我的"的架勢，晚上八點多了，還戀戀不舍地守著，可憐可惡又可愛。

 

如果說，周末有時候忙於其他家事不會時時刻刻去注意它們，那麽周一在家上班卻著實讓我開了眼界。我坐在樓下靠窗的桌上辦公，窗戶開著。八點多鍾，就開始聽見蜂鳥在那裏打架，嘰嘰喳喳吵個不停。我推開門看著，恨不能用鳥語告訴它們，不要吵，大家都有一口，糖水不夠可以再灌。記得後院幾年前掛過這個糖水罐的，怎麽好像不記得有這樣的"想獨霸吃獨食"的一景，依稀記得有兩隻蜂鳥一起和諧共喝的一幕。看來是現在資源匱乏了，鳥也變壞了:)

 

很快，這不絕於耳的打鬥聲開始讓我心煩意亂，越來越坐立不安，我無法清靜地坐在桌前看書工作。早上11點多電話會議結束後，忍無可忍的我衝出門，爬上去把糖罐拿了下來，很想好好教育一番小鳥。那隻守在附近的蜂鳥很快發現糖水罐不見了，飛到空空的架下不停飛舞著，迷茫著，好像在問"who took my honey?"

 

十一點半多，樓上某人喊打球，我上了樓，拉開後窗的簾子，隻見那隻蜂鳥蹲在高高的火龍果新抽出的枝條頂部，麵朝糖水罐方向癡癡地望著。我指著窗外的蜂鳥，告訴他說，我把那個糖水罐給撤了，蜂鳥為此打架不休呢，煩死人了。

 

某人說，打架就打架，總好過沒有吃的了。

 

話說，男人有時候心腸比女人還軟。

 

我聽後，隨即跑下樓去又重新把它掛了回去。就這樣，可憐的鳥兒們繼續吵，繼續打，幾乎整整一天，誰也不服誰，耗盡的力氣都夠飛到千裏之外的花園找到更甜美的花蜜了。那隻霸道的蜂鳥還一直守著附近，守著它的一日三餐，好像有了糖水罐，從此就可以衣食無憂，不用勞動，幸福生活似的。

 

後記: 

周三在家上班，情況有所好轉，至少白天不吵了，雖然那隻霸道的蜂鳥還在清晨和傍晚占據山頭，不讓別的蜂鳥靠近糖罐，不過白天的後院恢複了往日的平靜。

想著再買一個feeder， 情況會如何?

 

In the backyard, a tall stem erected from a Aloe vera was bearing a couple of bell-shaped flowers, attracting hummingbirds for the honey. As I saw a pitiful bird fluttering hard, poking its beak deep into a narrow flower tube for meagre honey, my sympathy was roused.  Weeks later, an old  hummingbird feeder, found back in the garage, was cleaned, filled with dissolved sugar water, and hung on the trellis.

The bright red color base with four yellow flower-shaped petals as its feeding mouths, designed for color-sensitive hummingbird, soon effectively lured a hummingbird, who examined the feeder and the area fully before plunging in and sucked more than 10 times (A record of around 60 was noticed days later for a hummingbird).

But when more birds wanted to join the party the next day,  the happy aggressive hummingbird turned sour.  In an attempt to claim the sole ownership, it started chasing off any other hummingbird from the area, and thus sparked a bout of fights. At a lightning speed, the hummingbirds whooshed by. Then in a second they rose up to the sky, and plummeted like a rock, bumping against each other in the air with all its force and strength.  The fights culminated the following day, and for the whole day while I was working next to window, the garden was engulfed in the fighting noises, sharp, high-pitched and non-stopped.  The scarcity of food source has made hummingbird selfish. Their presence was not a joy as I expected, but an irritant.  For once, I stormed out of the door, took the feeder down and shut myself in, leaving the hapless hummingbird confused and restlessly hovering under the empty space.  But then empathy triumphed, and the feeder was put back to the spot.

Luckily the intensity ebbed after a day or two before the backyard resumed its normalcy on Wednesday.  The aggressive hummingbird, though still seen circling around and chasing off others in the dusk, was no longer so agitated in the day.   It visited the backyard a few times in the morning and the afternoon, rested on a slender dangling vine by the feeder, or perched at the tip of a new dragon fruit shoot, overlooking the yard, and then soared away in a fleeting second.

Would one more new feeder allay their jitters?

 

 

天色已晚，倦鳥無歸意：）

 

 

兩隻蜂鳥在打架，對不起這個feeder髒髒的，裏麵刷子夠不著，洗不掉，不過是糖水幹淨的:) 準備買新的了。

 

 

 

來一張半身照：

 

 

從樓上隔著紗窗照的:

 

自己吃的自家第一顆火龍果，好吃:)