One of the aspects of the war with Iraq has been the dispersal of the original uniformed Iraq army into "insurgents" who dress like citizens. Who is the enemy? How can you fight that with no identity? I think of the early English armies in the 1700's times when the brilliant redcoats stood tall and clear, a perfect target for buckskin-clad countrymen hiding in the woods.

It is quite different in the wild where animal enemies are definite. The silhouette of a Cooper’s hawk swooping out of the woods is a definite enemy to birds and they instinctively take cover when that shape is seen. On a quail ranch, bobwhite, even though under a protective screening, flee at the sight of an approaching hawk. Even barnyard chickens have that automatic fear of soaring "chicken hawks" embedded in their instincts, and they panic at the sight.

Notice how songbirds are constantly flicking their head from side to side watching for danger. Hawks and owls are always on their minds and the enemy is plain to see. They know flying cormorants, geese, or gulls, are not the enemy; in fact, you often see a variety of birds feeding close together, the sparrows accepting the presence of warblers and other songbirds as if there is protection in unity where the more eyes the better.

Animals are wild because there is constant vigilance for everything from the moment of birth. Things eat things throughout the realm of nature. You need but go down by the riverside to see countless examples of the eating cycle, where even the grasses would flee if they could from the all-consuming horde of grass eaters. Even insects are constantly reworking vegetation in a stark game of eat, reproduce, and grow.

I see the osprey cruising the river watching for the hapless fish lingering too long at the surface and being pounced upon by the enemy. There is no "catch-and-release" with the osprey that is intent on obtaining food for survival. The stone fly may turn out to be an unexpected hook for the trout.

The cute cats dumped along the river path can turn out to be the enemy for birds, especially fledglings in the spring time where their youthful and clumsy flutterings are a prime target for enemy predators. There is little allowance for cute and innocence in the game of eat and survive.

One apparent example of an enemy is the fox out in the meadow in quest of meat. The jack rabbit goes bounding away from the furry predator, large eyes full of fear as it tries to outdistance the foe. Those rabbits, actually hares, are constantly watching for danger, whether crouched in the grass or on the move. Their large ears are held high to detect danger. Baby hares are cuddly-cute but destined for a life of running, able to hop about shortly after birth, and liable to be devoured by a variety of enemies. "Cute" has little meaning for hungry animals.

The jack rabbit and meadowlark are friends, however, knowing that they have nothing to fear from each other. You will not see any apparent close-up relationship, though, because different species are alone in their niche. There is a silent acceptance of a neighbor in the unwritten unspoken language of the wild.

"Most human experience of nature comes through a narrow window.

It opens midway between molecules and the Milky Way

It is astonishing that our limited view makes any sense."

Paul Shepard