"Birds and Cages" by Ida Tomshinsky: book review

Birds and Cages

“I am not afraid to say that I am fascinated by birds. Flying birds always provoked human admiration. There is this unexplained mystery feeling that surrounds us watching birds on the forests’ trees, in our back yard, at the ocean, sea, or lake. Birds are an infinite treasure of inspiration for humans, waking us up in the morning with beautiful bird songs. Their little brain is of a size of an unshelled walnut associates with intelligent behavior and the same capabilities of humans and apps’ mental tasks.” (Ida Tomshinsky)

When you think about all of the animals in the world, you quickly realize that birds are, in fact, amongst some of the most intelligent creatures we have on Earth. Although there are more than 10,000 bird species worldwide, only a handful of them have made the list for extremely talented and incredibly intelligent. So who are these super intelligent feathered friends? It is difficult to pick one: perhaps Kea, Ravens and Crows are equally smart; Macaws, Cockatoo, and Jays are on the top of any list, too.  Who knew that “African Grey was capable working out the location of hidden food by using the kind of deduction and elimination skills previously seen only in humans and apes?” And as you probably have heard, they are exceptional talkers!

Today, we all know that it is bad to imprison birds in cages, but it was not always the case throughout the history. “Some birds are not meant to be caged, that's all. Their feathers are too bright, their songs too sweet and wild.” (Stephen King)

Due to beautiful poetry and cultural expressions, the flying bird became a symbol of freedom and independence. There are cases of historic acknowledgment of birdcages, especially in the Victorian era, people were listening to bird songs in cages as it would be their radio entertainment outlet. During the war times, birds demonstrated their unique abilities in courageous heroic efforts to help humans to transfer information through the battled fields.

The birds and birdcages both have a long-time history. Our love for the amazing Earth creatures makes us to stand out for their protection and safety to enjoy our shared inhabitants on the planet; and as for the birdcages, people find them pretty appealing in various ways of the aesthetic repurposing.