May 1 2002

On March 31 I speculated that the blackbird in his thorny cage was not the same one as we had last year and the year before. But now I have to make a very definite correction. He is the same bird. It has taken him some time to remember his little tune but now he has got it back and it is unmistakable. He has been missing from his night perch on a lot of occasions recently but nevertheless he does return every now and again. He was there last night for instance, perched on exactly the same branch as he always uses. So he is as much a creature of habit as are the rest of us.