The Eagle and the Snake

Anza Barrego Desert State Park is a beautiful preserve located between Joshua Tree and San Diego. This amazing ecosystem supports many species of birds, insects and animals. We humans visit to take in the splendor and to experience this wonderful place. Who would ever have thought that many birds use snakeskin to "line their nests as a deterrent against would be predators from eating their eggs and nestlings"? (Research Sheds Light On Snakeskin Sheds in Bird Nests, Benjamin Hack, p. 14, Living Bird Magazine, Cornel Lab, Spring 2025, v 44, #2).

Hack goes on further to state that 78 bird species from 22 different families use shedded snakeskin to line their nests. On a trip to Anza Barrego a few years ago, I watched as an Eagle appeared in the sky, holding a a large snake in its beak. The bird soared majestically higher and higher until it suddenly dropped that snake. Perhaps the eagle had caught the snake before it could prey on the eaglets, just doing its best to protect the little ones. In any case, the snake was now on its way to its demise and to become food for some other animal. But what about the snakeskin? Many indigenous Americans used snakeskin to make belts, moccasins, etc. Perhaps a bird picked up the skin to line its nest. How wonderful, watching nature at work, working together to make their world, consciously or unconsciously - the eagle, the other birds, the snake sacrificing its life and suffering so that many would survive and live their lives.

But there is more. In another article, The Hole Story, (op. cit., p. 46), Marc Devokaitis writes: "Research shows that woodpeckers are the home builders of the forest, excavating nest holes that are subsequently used by hundreds of other species of birds, mammals, insects and reptiles." The article goes on to illustrate how different the holes are, depending on the species, and how the "finished product" attracts different species according to design. How similar this process seems to human home building. In nature, the holes drilled by the woodpeckers become the entry to a "food web", an eco-system consisting of all those birds, insects and animals who share the resources.

Even birds who need a rest from a long flight will use these "homes" in much the same way humans stay in hotels, motels and air b&b's. Because some holes are larger, mammals like squirrels and weasels use these tree cavities to protect and safely raise their young. The interconnectedness shared by the trees, the animals, the birds and the insects is the being-ness of all that we observe. The result is a thriving community where each does his/her part just by being who they are. The Northern Flicker (a wood pecker species) drills a hole to its innate specifications resulting in an opening loved by the Mountain Chickadee, Short-tailed Weasel and other smaller creatures; the larger Pileated Woodpecker makes openings large enough for the American Kestrel (a hawk-like bird) the Deer Mouse and the Woodrat, among others..

Once the occupant vacates the nest, others renovate and move into the space just like in our own communities. What a world we could be if we would simply always do what is ours to do. As we see, nature operates in this way. Each of the members of these food webs, these tree communities, does their part simply because they are there to do it. We are able to do this as well and many communities strive to exist in the way of nature. There are home builders, contractors and architects who help others create housing and community infrastructure. There are manufacturers who create clothing, automobiles and goods; there are growers who provide sustenance and markets to distribute. We can allow nature to guide us in our search for better community by being more loving, kind and responsible to one another. Begin today by speaking kind words to someone. Tell someone you love them. Love is the way.