My big mistake was assuming all biggish-looking birds that are spotted are thrushes. Starlings, I thought, were just nasty and aggressive, but with a beautifully iridescent black coat.
Gavin Dann of Alexandra was among those who rushed to their phone and keyboards on Friday morning in their haste to correct me.
"I think the thrush that scared away the silvereyes in today’s ODT page two photo must itself have been scared away by the starling shown just microseconds before Dorothy O’Donnell pushed the shutter button on her camera!"
Alison emailed to say the "so-called" thrush had "all the plumage of a not-fully developed starling".
"The starlings always chase the other birds away to get at what is put out. I call them the rats of the skies."
Thanks to all who put me right.
Obviously if I want to increase reader engagement, I need to keep getting things wrong.
How about sending in photographs of birds wintering over in your garden? I’m keen to run them this week.
Ant airlinesSelwyn Prattley is still laughing at the piece on page three of Friday’s ODT about ants being found on a plane that, according to a Ministry for Primary Industries spokeswoman, "travels backwards and forwards from Australia".
"I wonder if there are controls at both ends of the plane? Or do the pilots use their rear-view mirrors?"
Mosgiel clockI’ve had a few anecdotal reports of strange goings-on with this clock in Gordon Rd. Can anyone send me missives about any weirdness they notice?
Former PMsIn light of the hundreds of words we’ve run on Norman Kirk, a suggestion was made we should perhaps now share memories of Sir Robert Muldoon.
My initial reaction was "yeh, nah". But happy to be overruled.
Cable-car accidentWednesday November 5, 1952 was a sad day in Dunedin’s history. The Mornington cable car collided with a double-parked car in lower High St.
The bumper of the car scraped along the outside of the cable car and two girls, Ursula McGeorge (11) and Georgina Reeves (12), had to have their left legs amputated as a result.
Leila Gilchrist, nee Stewart, of Waiheke Island, was also on that cable car and has sent in her memories of the accident.
"The recent revival of interest in Dunedin cable cars has prompted me to write about the accident I was injured in on November 5, 1952. Five children were injured.
"I was off to my elocution lesson in town after school. The small front and rear cabins were occupied, and we were told quite testily, "No room", which left us the option of strap-hanging on the outside.
"As we approached the end of the line at the bottom of High St, there was a double-parked car and the cable-car driver was unable to apply brakes in time. Upon impact, the metal rear bumper acted like an axe and two girls each lost a leg. Then it was my turn to be injured, standing further back.
"My memories of that impact are thankfully blocked out, but then I came to, screaming out for my mummy while painfully aware of the tourniquet being wound tight to stop the bleeding.
"The very kind man was apologetic, saying he had to do that. What a hero. Then waiting for what seemed like eternity, hearing the sirens coming, first to take the two girls and then me and another boy standing behind me on the cable car to hospital.
"Staff kept coming in to ask what my name and phone number was, and eventually my sister arrived home from teaching and was able to answer the phone, and then had to run down to the city to find my mother who was on her Wednesday shopping expedition.
"It was national news of course, and the ODT duly arrived to take our photos, with us now all spick and span in tidy beds.
"As an 8-year-old, my worst memory was the homesickness. Oh how that time dragged from a Saturday and Sunday afternoon visit until the following Wednesday afternoon. Only 30-minute visits and only two people at a time. As the news went out, we had so many kind wishes, so encouraging.
"My injury was lacerated muscles in my left leg. To this day, I cannot bear anyone to touch my leg, as it is still so sensitive with the nerve damage. But it hasn’t stopped me in any way. The next year I returned for an operation and this time I was able to cope with homesickness.
"I now live in Auckland and in 2013, when 71, I joined the ‘Hip Op-eration’ crew, the oldest hip-hop dancers in the world and was a lead dancer. We are in the Guinness Book of Records.
"This was another challenge and what a wonderful time of my life."
Leila, that is such an inspiring story. Thank you so much for telling us about it.I’ve asked Leila if she can send us a photo of her hip-hop dancing.