It was a long time ago. So long ago that the old crows don’t remember when it was. And crows live a long time in the world. Maybe two hundred, maybe three hundred years.
An old owl settled in a forest ravine near a fast mountain river. Where did she come from? When did you arrive to these places? Nobody took part. Yes, no one wanted to know: the owl lives, well, let him live...
The owl was elegant, in lush plumage. Although there was not a speck of green, blue or red anywhere on her, she was very pretty. White and smoky-gray feathers clung feather to feather so thickly that when the owl took off, spreading its wings, so silent and light, it looked like a big ball of smoke.
Her eyes were round and yellow, her beak was curved downwards, and her claws were curved and tenacious.
There is enough space for all birds in the forest: some build a nest between the branches of an oak tree, some in a fork or a birch tree, some on bushes, and some just among the grass. An owl climbed into the hollow of an old linden tree. There she arranged housing for her family in advance, knowing that she would have owlets.
They really were born, first one, then another, a third... And another one. Large-mouthed, big-headed, helpless chicks were constantly asking for food. Their mother took tender care of them: she would bring them worms or frog meat. She knew how to hunt, deftly tracked down small rodents; If any little mouse gaped anywhere, she grabbed him and dragged him into the hollow.
- Serves you right! - the owl said. “There is no benefit from you, only harm, and my children need to eat, otherwise they will die.”
The owlets lived in a dark and warm hollow, like in a yurt. It protected them from heat, rain, wind and predatory animals.
The big-eyed owlets grew up quickly. The oldest chick had already fallen out of the hollow several times while looking for water to drink. The water was nearby: a side branch, broken off from the trunk by a storm, was constantly filled to the brim with rainwater, like a Chumashka or a cauldron. Drink as much as you want!
Small forest birds, flying nearby, often sat in front of the linden tree, preened their feathers, fluttered from branch to branch, whistled, rested, but did not linger at the owl’s nest. They had a lot of their own worries: they also had to get food for the chicks, and they tried to catch as many insects and flies as possible, and chased mosquitoes, grabbing them on the fly.
The owl hunted most often at night. She didn't like being bothered.
What a fun summer it was! How many bird songs rang out in the forest! No one could count them and no one could repeat them - they were so different and there were so many of them...
But then autumn came, cold winds blew into the valley. And it immediately became boring. The leaves on the trees changed color, became yellow and red, like fire... It was because of the cold that they became like that. Now each clever worm was in a hurry to wrap itself tightly in a leaf and, with the help of the wind, lie down on the ground in order to safely overwinter, and not end up in the beak of some bird. Fat beetles, grasshoppers, and all sorts of insects also tried to hide away from their winged enemies. Even the frogs are hiding: there is a heron standing on one leg, looking out. Wow!
One day blackbirds, swifts, ducks, and various birds got together and decided to go to the owl: let him teach him what to do! The owl was considered very smart.
- Tell me, owl, what should we do? It becomes cold and empty in the forest. Do you know if there's a better place somewhere?
This bluebird asked, so important. He sang a lot this summer, didn’t miss a single day, kept on trilling in the mornings - both in clear weather and in the rain, and now he took care of his throat and spoke quietly. But other songbirds vied with each other to lend their ringing voices:
- Speak, tell me what we should do! - the greenfinch chirped.
- Teach, teach, teach us! - was heard from everywhere. The owl sat under a tree, lowered its wings, and immediately answered them. Her voice was thin, gurgling, as if she was blowing a reed pipe:
- How do I know? - said the owl. “It’s also becoming difficult for me to live with my children...” She paused, thought about everything and reasoned like this: “That’s it... Someone will have to fly overseas, maybe it’s better there?” but the way there is long. I guess I'll fly off myself. We need to see what's going on there. If I find a suitable place, we'll all fly away...
The birds agreed, it couldn’t be better! With a cheerful hubbub they left the owl and praised it in every possible way: she’s brave, she’ll fly alone! That's how smart she is!
That same day, as soon as the sun went to rest behind the distant mountains, the owl set off on its journey.
She was gone for a long time. While she was flying, many leaves fell from the trees. The water in the river became cold, but the grass was still green, and here and there you could see shells from eaten nuts, tassels of red berries along with scraps of vines and crushed mushrooms. This is a bear that went fishing in the morning and was in charge... One day he looked into the hollow of an old linden tree, breathed on the owls and scared them so much that they didn’t get out of there all day.
The owl returned home at night. No one saw her arrive. But as soon as it began to get light, the silence of the autumn forest was shaken by her drawn-out cry:
- Awww! Awww!
The birds woke up and realized that the owl was already at home and was calling them. They were delighted and hurried to her. Everyone wants to quickly find out what news the owl brought. There were a lot of them. They flap their wings and push each other away. It became crowded and noisy in the owl's nest.
Someone hastily pushed the duck, it quacked and fell into a hollow stump filled with water. Nobody cared about her. So the duck remained in the water, sitting, waiting...
In the meantime, the hostess decided to vacate the nest, she herself came out of there and kicked out the guests. She didn't intend to keep them long. The birds sat in the bushes, on the grass closer to the linden tree, and froze in anticipation. Only the oriole chose the top of the birch tree for itself.
“Well, that’s what, my friends,” said the owl, “I was overseas, flew around many countries, but I didn’t find anything good anywhere.” It's also cold and empty there, just like here. We'll have to spend the winter here.
- How is this, how?
- What are we going to do?
Hearing this news, the birds were sad: the owl flew so far, and everything was in vain... The bluebird sighed, and the black-headed oriole meowed like a cat; she was the first to leave her place and fly away. Maybe the owl will come up with something after all?
But the owl was silent and impatiently waited for the birds to leave her alone. “I’ve caused trouble for myself,” she thought.
As soon as the last jay nodded goodbye to her with its red crest, the owl sat down at the entrance to the hollow, spread its wings so that no one could hear it, and said to the owlets:
- Shhh! Keep quiet! Not a word to anyone. These little birds are very stupid and greedy. I didn't want to tell them that I had found a good place. Tomorrow we will fly to the south, it is warm there, there are a lot of small snakes, worms, shrews and all kinds of food for us. Eat here, I brought you little mice and seaweed...
If only the owl knew that someone would overhear her words! But the owl didn't know this. And sooner or later they pay for deception...
A duck sitting in the water suddenly flapped its wings so that splashes flew in all directions. In addition, with her strong beak she crushed the stump along the edges and, together with water and wood chips, splashed onto the ground. In surprise, the owl just blinked its eyes. I wanted to catch up with the duck, but it ran a few steps along the grass, and then spread its wings and flew to the shore.
- Birds of the forest! - she screamed. - The owl is a liar! She deceived us all! Come here, I am. I'll tell you. You shouldn’t have believed her, you shouldn’t, you shouldn’t!
The white-tailed eagle was the first to hear the duck, swooped, circled over the forest and sat down by the water. Then a hawk flew in. And the crows are right there, they are also interested - so curious...
The owl, watching them from a high tree, listened and was indignant: What rubbish this duck is, she thought angrily, telling everyone, everyone! Are they at one with her, or what? What the hell, they’ll conspire and attack me... Perhaps I need to hide from them.
The owl sat down by its nest and ruffled its feathers. Now, of course, all the birds learn that there is no winter in warm countries. They will find their way there by the sun, by the southern winds, just as she found it. Who will be friends with her now? Nobody.
In the morning, as soon as the sun rose, the bird caravans flew south. There were a lot of birds. Where they were flying, the sky remained dark. The air trembled from their cheerful screams...
– Are we flying correctly? I should ask the owl... - the redstarts chirped, flying in a large and friendly flock.
- She is unfaithful, she will deceive! - said the blackbird, overtaking his distant relatives.
And the geese laughed:
- You found someone to look for advice from. Ha-ha-ha! Hearing the feathered travelers above talking to each other and laughing, the owl became silent.
- Well, what about us? What about us? – the owls asked, looking impatiently first at her and then at the flying caravans. They became very big, but they could not live independently.
-What do you want? Look how many of them are flying, what a blast! “They’ll eat everything there,” she said angrily. - Let them fly away! Let it go! And we will stay here...
This is how the gray owl has been wintering in our Ussuri forests ever since.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru