A Surprise Visit

Today I was filling bait bags and merrily singing country tunes to myself. This is a common past time since we don't listen to any music while we work. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of something falling to the deck from above. It was as sudden a descent as a wet leaf falling from a tree on a stormy day. At first I thought that perhaps it was indeed a leaf. But then I remembered where we were: 10 miles off shore on the ocean! The only time that anything falls from the sky out there is if it's raining or snowing.

When I looked down to see what it was I was surprised to discover a wee goldfinch. He was a sweet little fellah, hopping around the deck pecking curiously at seaweed and barnacles that fell from the traps. He was a bit scruffy looking, as if he had been on a long journey (perhaps migrating from thousands of miles away) and looked fatigued. I promptly named him Herb.

I watched Herb closely as he jumped inside and around the traps, clearly unphased by us humans. He didn't even seem to notice when I set more traps in the stern right next to the one he sat in! I was appalled by his confidence. Herb brazenly approached us a few times. He hopped along the rail directly behind me a few times. He even stood right next to Cap at one point. I warned Cap to watch his step as he lunged for a buoy with Herb right under him. But Herb promptly flew away and escaped through Cap's window.

Herb stuck around with us for as long as five hours or so. He somehow strayed from us at one point and I looked back to see him flying in the typical goldfinch flight pattern of fast wing beating punctuated by soaring. He was flying furiously trying to catch up with the boat. I watched him for a while curious about whether he'd make it. To my horror, a gull swooped down and barely missed him. Herb swerved slickly away from the gull and continued his frantic flight. A few more narrow escapes later he finally reached the boat and once again plummeted to the deck.

I thought that perhaps Herb was hungry and offered him a few bites of my sandwich, placing them in strategic places where he might feel comfortable dining. But he wasn't in the least bit interested in human food. He much preferred to nibble on marine debris.

At the end of the day when we were steaming home, Herb perched in the wheelhouse, perhaps to stay out of the wind. I went up forward to get some nourishment and I startled him at first. But then he just sat there maybe a foot away from me. I reached my hand out to see if he'd hop into it, since he seemed trusting enough to do so. He thought about it. His beady black eyes darted between me and his surroundings, assessing the situation. But he thought the better of it.

He stayed with us until we got close to shore and then he just disappeared as quickly as he had showed up. It's as if he knew that we were landward bound from the minute he set his scrawny little bird feet on deck. He clearly associated us with safety, knowing that the gulls wouldn't harass him on board. He had hitchhiked a ride to land! Just another summer visitor safely arriving to the lovely Maine coast after a long journey.