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I was told nearly everything would try to kill you...
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for years people have known you paint eyes on your helmet (or just big black/white blobs depending on helmet color) and it keeps them further away - they'll still dive but will turn away much earlier, yet so many don't do it.
(All the posties do it, magpies love the posties on their little scooters, 5 days a week.)
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About 10 years ago I read the book Three Weeks With My Brother[^] (non-fiction) by Nicholas Sparks (normally a fiction writer).
The author and his brother travel to a number of locations around the world but he also tells the story of a large crow attacking him when he was a kid. The story stuck with me.
Last week I was out running and I ran past two large crows investigating something on the road and I kept a wary eye toward them as I jogged by, wondering if they might start the chase.
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raddevus wrote: I was out running and I ran past two large crows investigating something on the road
Same thing happened to me a couple of weeks ago. A car had hit a rabbit, whose body was lying in our company's entrance road. When I went out for a run, a turkey vulture was having lunch  . Fortunately, they're neither defensive nor aggressive.
Software Zen: delete this;
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The maggies around our area would laugh at fake eyes and go, arrow-like, for your real eyes.
I remember riding down a busy street on my bike, flat out, with a magpie hovering over me tearing chunks from my ears while an 18-wheeler was driving on my tail blasting his horn at me.
Pure terror.
cheers
Chris Maunder
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Wait, you're from Australia and *magpies* are the local animals that terrify you?
You have spiders that eat those birds FFS.
BIRD EATING SPIDERS
*hides*
When I was growin' up, I was the smartest kid I knew. Maybe that was just because I didn't know that many kids. All I know is now I feel the opposite.
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The spiders are cute. We used to bring these into our classroom in grade 4 to play with instead of listening to our teachers. They kinda tickled as they walked over your arms.
cheers
Chris Maunder
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that belongs in a cauldron, not on your skin.
along with some eye of newt, beard of a bald man, that kind of thing.
When I was growin' up, I was the smartest kid I knew. Maybe that was just because I didn't know that many kids. All I know is now I feel the opposite.
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honey the codewitch wrote: beard of a bald man
We prefer the term "follicly-challenged", thank you very much.
Software Zen: delete this;
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well if you have a beard you aren't. the hair just migrated south. 
When I was growin' up, I was the smartest kid I knew. Maybe that was just because I didn't know that many kids. All I know is now I feel the opposite.
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Ironically, that's exactly what it did. When I was younger and had hair, my beard was non-existent. I'm older, have lost most of my hair, but can now manage a respectable amount of scruff (much to the wife's disgust).
We won't discuss the color balance, however...
Software Zen: delete this;
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she doesn't like a beard? I like beards, as long as they don't have things growing in them.
When I was growin' up, I was the smartest kid I knew. Maybe that was just because I didn't know that many kids. All I know is now I feel the opposite.
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Not her favorite thing, no. Fortunately mine is limited to a fairly short and trim scruff(*), rather than the full-on face forest.
(*) It gets straggly if it gets longer than a cm or so.
Software Zen: delete this;
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one really has to have the right face for a forest or they end up looking like a biker. 
not that this is a bad thing, but it's usually not the look most men are going for.
When I was growin' up, I was the smartest kid I knew. Maybe that was just because I didn't know that many kids. All I know is now I feel the opposite.
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It is a sad outcome but really the fault is with the cyclist.
Everyone should know not to swerve your vehicle excessively to avoid a rabbit, roo, or other animal.
It puts you in danger in lieu of them. A peck on the helmet isn't going to hurt you. He just stuffed up. Did the wrong thing and didn't get the chance to learn from his mistake.
It is magpie season here now. They only swoop for about 6 weeks during the spring when their young are hatching. The rest of the year they carol and sing to us. They are wonderful.
Oh and I should add that they never swoop their friends, as in people that they know or love.
Lost a few good mates before puberty and a lot more after that.
But that is just life here down under.
...and every where else I assume.
"Rock journalism is people who can't write interviewing people who can't talk for people who can't read." Frank Zappa 1980
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grralph1 wrote: But that is just life here down under.
...and every where else I assume.
Ummm .... I can't remember a single friend, or even colleague that I've lost to "bird attack" in the UK. We did have a cat that was chased away by blue tits, but that's about as close as it gets.
It's possible that Oz is alone in this!
Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640
Never throw anything away, Griff
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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I lost a friend to a turkey buzzard.
Admittedly, that's kinda what happens when you're flying a fighter jet and hit one, and you're too low to the ground to do much but crash.
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Granted. We may be alone on this.
We have heaps of nasties and are proud of it.
But blue tits.
Gees I live in Canberra where it is really cold and have never been attacked or confronted with these scary things.
"Rock journalism is people who can't write interviewing people who can't talk for people who can't read." Frank Zappa 1980
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Blue Tits are quite common in Scotland in the winter months, especially once the clubs have closed...
Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640
Never throw anything away, Griff
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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Yeah - he really should have been thinking rationally and logically and acted with more emotional control while being attacked by a swooping magpie.
People don't work like that.
cheers
Chris Maunder
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Not to mention the gentleman was 76 years old. His reaction time is slower, and he's a lot more concerned about spilling the bike since it's going to hurt a lot more than it does when your 26.
Software Zen: delete this;
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Wise up young man.
We live in a universe the entire objective of which is to kill us, lest we should eventually, in the far future, perhaps, maybe turn into intelligent life.
Go ask the dinosaurs.
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Chris C-B wrote: in the far future, perhaps, maybe turn into intelligent life.
<looks at people to my left> …
<looks at people to my right> …
Won't happen!
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
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You mean this whole thing with the dinosaurs was that they were becoming too smart?
I knew it! Super Genius Evil Dinosaur!
cheers
Chris Maunder
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