Urban Whims of Some Birds

by EFREN LAYA CRUZADA

Above palm leaves thatching corrugated roofs,
a frigatebird rises along a thermal updraft, waking
from a stint of aerial sleep, glancing briefly
at colonial buildings and manicured lawns,
eyeing boats seating tourists who will never set foot
on streets where homes are made of salvaged metal.
It glides toward white mangrove trees, lands
on a tall cohune palm, and ceases the flapping
of its dark plumage. An oropendola, perched
on the same tree, is bothered by the new presence.
It flutters away, flying over mangroves, reaching the city.
From above, the contrasting districts catch its eye,
and the bird lands on a patch of purple orchids.
A teenager bends down and squints at a pistil.
The bird pokes its head out, startling the youth,
and the oropendola whizzes by the teen’s earlobe,
yellow-tipped feathers flapping vigorously
from block to block, sensing the infrasound
of an incoming hurricane. Taking off,
it passes by a finch darting toward
the storm’s eye, a finch that pays no mind
to the homes near shopping centers
and tennis courts, choosing a shed,
which will soon be abandoned, for shelter.