Gold Finch & The First Day of the Spring Festival

猪年大年初一和金翅雀的故事

从前邻居的花园里经常聚居着一群金翅雀，它们个头不大，性格温顺，红颊白颈，黑色尾羽上配着金黄色的一圈，实在惹人喜爱。尽管我们的花园里也鸟语不断，蓝冠山雀，知更鸟，黑山鸟和松鸦等等络绎不绝, 还有热带的长尾小鹦鹉光临，更不用说随处可见的喜鹊和斑尾林鸽了，但从来没有得到过金翅雀的垂青。我问邻居奶奶有什么秘诀，她很爽快地告诉我：蓟花籽啊！金翅雀最喜欢蓟花籽。然后还很热心地告诉我在哪里能买到：附近的某某花木中心就有卖的。于是我便兴冲冲地去买了蓟花籽,放在新的鸟食筒里挂在树上,然后心满意足地等着做姜太公，愿者来食。可是，几个星期过去了，没有等到金翅雀的光临，却等到了让我们搬离的通知。一通忙乱，最后搬走之前，我没有忘记从树上摘下蓟花籽筒，带到了新家。把雀食带过来，也不知道能不能吸引到附近的金翅雀，不过总是要尝试一下罗。

I used to envy an old neighbour's garden: it always has them colourful gold finches in it. They have red cheeks, white collar, and a golden yellow band on their tail wings, guaranteed to provide colour for the winter garden. They have a mild temper too and don't normally fly away when she takes pictures quite close. We didn't use to have any gold finch in our garden, although there were enough shelter and food around and plenty of blue tit, great tit, robin, black bird, parakeet etc., around, occasionally a pair of Jay too. So I asked her one day, what's the secret of attracting gold finches. Oh, thistle seeds, she said, they definitely love thistle seeds! You can get them in the garden centre nearby you know, she helpfully added. Always in hope, we went along to the garden centre in the soonest opportunity, bought some magic seeds and feeders, started the experiment.

However, a few weeks had passed and no gold finch but a notice to leave letter had arrived at our door. It was sad to leave, especially without the gold finches, but I made sure I took the seeds with me to the new house.

关于金翅雀，邻居奶奶还和我讲了个古：她家附近的金翅雀的故事。原来20年前，在邻居奶奶还没有当奶奶的时候，住在她家河对面的，是个古怪的老奶奶，也有人云，她是个巫婆。她家的院子里人头高的野草丛生，一尺宽的大树从房子中间长出来，房子里没水没电，没有任何现代设备，可老奶奶不肯做任何变动。院子里倒是野生动物的天堂，各种生物在内作巢，其中也包括金翅雀。直到有一天老奶奶去世了，树倒猕狲散，金翅雀才散落在周围各家。一开始它们也没有飞过河这边来光临邻居的花园，是后来问来了秘诀之后照计而行才引到贵客。邻居奶奶说：一开始我也有点灰心，蓟花籽都挂出去好久了它们也没来过，它们一定不会过来我这里了。不过耐心的等了几个星期之后，它们还是来了，而且从此就在这里安家了！


接下来搬家，中间许多事不表。新家花园挂出去的四五个鸟食具迅速引来了知更鸟和山雀，不过蓟花籽筒还是门前冷落。

House hunting followed by packing followed by moving followed by unpacking, etc. I hanged out a few feeders on the trees in the new garden and these have soon attracted robins and tits around (the robins are especially fond of the fat balls) but the thistle seeds were still left un-touched.

狗年摇摇尾巴结束了，金猪来啦。大年初一，一个懒觉起来，习惯性地看看外面的鸟食情况：两只肥嘟嘟的知更鸟，已经把两个全脂鸟食划为它们的领地；蓝冠山雀们则还是小心谨慎地，左右顾盼，忽悠俯冲，初尝既弃，不过好像比一开始的时候已经好多了。再看看这边蓝色的蓟花籽筒：咦，一只小鸟在上面！肥肥的。。头上有红色。。颈上好像有白色围领。。尾翼上有金黄色。。再翻出鸟类手册，就是我们盼望的金翅雀啦！它独自在那厢啄得很香，对周围世界完全不关心的样子，憨厚可爱。更让我喜出望外的是，转眼出现了第二只金翅雀，在第一只的对面吃食，也是一副老饕的样子。它们还啄得很有节奏，样子很象小时候玩的跷跷板两边各是一只搪瓷公鸡的一种玩具，你啄一下，我啄一下，你啄一下，我啄一下。好像五分钟的样子，这两只才心满意足，飞走了。歇五分钟，又重新开始！

Soon the year of the dog was saying goodbye and celebration for the golden pig was in order. The first day of the Spring Festival and the Pig, I was doing the usual 2 minutes gazing at the feeders and thinking of the things to do: fireworks, Chunlian, etc. There were the usual two chubby Robins and tits around. But what was that little red dot doing there? It's a chubby one, some red on it's head, white strip on neck, yellow in the tail... Grab the binocular and the AA field book -- it's "unmistakably" the gold finch! Aha, we've made the grade! Thanks neighbour, thanks golden pig! Look! there's another one coming, pecking away with the chubby one, like two toy chicken on a seesaw. They are much more relaxed than the blue tits, pecking up to 5 minutes at the feeder at one time, without even much of a look-out gesture. We soon saw a third gold finch and there's sometimes a friction brewing because there are only two "seats" on the feeder. Maybe we just need to get another feeder. And a bird house too, maybe? Oh a long lense too while we are at it, for taking pictures of our birds?