Poems and Thoughts    by Frank Maurer

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New Avian Competition on My Feeder. I have inhabited my small farm in Davis, California, Living, teaching, and farming since 1978. Over the years, I have maintained various bird feeders. In all those years, I have never seen a non-native sparrow, Rather, only two native sparrow species, The White-crowned and Golden-crowned individuals. This year (2026) in January, I was shocked by Observing two House Sparrows on the feeder. This species is known for its aggressiveness. Watching carefully, I calculated how often the House Sparrow Displaced the other two species off the perches. The House Sparrow most often succeeded. Then, when the seed level got very low, barely reachable, The House Sparrow, yet more rigorously, maintained the perch position. This seems to be because at the end of the seed supply, It must be defended more vigorously. Moreover, the House Sparrow strongly defended its position Because of its bill size, Which was heavier and slightly longer than that of the other two species, Thus, it more easily reaches the remaining seed. (This non-native species is also reported displacing others for nesting sites.) It was instructive to document this aggressiveness close up, And not just receive reports of this type of behavior. Now I need to observe everything much more accurately! Frank Maurer 23 January 2026 1600 Hours.