Felix was gliding over the city of Montreal in Quebec, a state in Canada. He could see the skyscrapers reaching out to the sky, never quite succeeding. As he reached the outskirts of the city, Felix saw a lush garden. Naturally, he had to take a look.
Felix flew down in a swoop and landed in a bush. Suddenly, he heard a bird’s indignant tweet. He realized it was none other than a Swainson’s thrush with its small brown and speckled body.
Felix thought to himself, “Oh! Just last month I read about a published report that studied 80 of these birds. As per the findings, Swainson’s thrushes migrate from northern areas to Central and northern South America every autumn. But on the way, they make a pit stop in and around cities such as Montreal. This is a strategic move as it helps them refuel, molt, and migrate faster!
Felix thought this is a good chance to see if the report was right or wrong. He started conversing with the bird.
Felix quickly tweeted to the bird, he said, “Oh, I am so sorry for disturbing you, little birdie! But I must say, you have a beautiful voice!”
The bird tweeted back. Soon enough, the bird and the Fleet were in deep conversation.
Felix asked, “What are you doing here, birdie? I thought you’d be migrating southwards. Shouldn’t you be in Central or South America?”
As expected, the bird told Felix it is making a pitstop in Montreal to molt. In 40 days, it will have new feathers and then it will fly away.
Felix replied, “Little birdie, you have a long journey ahead of you and new feathers will surely help.”
The bird bid goodbye to Felix and flew away.
Felix thought to himself, “The report is right! But the study also found that while cities are good pit stops for migrating birds, they can also get dangerous. Sometimes these birds confuse light with glass windows and smash into them. The cities were once their habitat. But now it is up to humans to make these cities safe for birds like these. One way would be to switch off lights in big buildings. Let me start with my dorm room!”
After thoughtful self-talk, Felix flew away too!