The bamboo surrounding our property is at the tail end of a narrow swath of forest that separates the neighborhood from a highway. It's a rich habitat for all kinds of wildlife—foxes, raccoons, possums, an occasional coyote, any number of small rodents, and a variety of birds. Every year starting in September, however, we get more birds than we like. Bamboo makes wonderful shelter for flocks looking for protection from wind and cold. It has evergreen leaves and thousands of comfortable little branches where starlings, grackles, and various hangers-on like robins can easily find a cozy bunk for the night. It gets a little crazy at twilight, with squadrons of birds forming in the sky above the house, diving into the bamboo, and fighting for the best perch. There's quite a bit of squeaking and fluttering (and in the case of starlings, whistling), and if there's a hawk present (this year we have a very focused Cooper's hawk), the panic is widespread. There have been many occasions when a friend or delivery person has been afraid to leave their car because they can't figure out what's moving around in the bushes. "Do you have bats?" is a frequently asked question by any new UPS driver. This year's bizarre weather seems to have changed the over-wintering patterns, though. The starlings and grackles have moved away, leaving only a small flock of robins that roosts just near our front door. We call them our commuter robins as they come in at dusk, and leave as soon as the sun comes up. With their clucking and rustling, they alert us to any person or any critter that moves around at night. And they're so much more polite than the starlings, leaving their droppings in the yard and not on our cars. Very neighborly!