Faex Avium |

I have always been fascinated by poo – the processes of its becoming, its powers to encourage life, and the endless jokes about the subject told by four-year-old boys, and by those boys who have not left their childhoods entirely behind. Over the years, I’ve also enjoyed reading about poo. Some of my favourite books have been Nicola Davies’ Poop: A Natural History of the Unmentionable, Josh Richman & Anish Sheth’s What’s Your Poo Telling You?, Susan Goodman’s Truth about Poop, and Jeannette Rowe’s Whose Poo? (There are more titles here for those wanting to follow up this line of research). Then, sometime in 2016, I noticed that a friend of mine started posting the occasional photo of bird poo on her Facebook feed. I was immediately struck by them. They spoke to me of simplicity, of randomness, of good humour, and of temporality. They highlighted again for me the enormous disparity between my own environmental footprint and that of other creatures. They also invited me to better notice a part of my everyday landscape, especially things like footpaths, objects that are otherwise quite uninteresting. Captured, I started doing the same – taking photos of bird poo. For a few weeks or so, it became something of an obsession, one that resulted in missed trains and lateness to meetings, interesting discussions with curious onlookers wondering what the Methuselah I was doing with my phone so close to the ground, and much amusement with children. It’s been fun. While beauty may well be in the eye of the beholder, joy should be shared. So, below are some of the images I’ve captured, shared in the hope that others may enjoy them too, or at least get a good giggle out of one or two of them.

Stretching

Almost a 6

The Nymph and the Brolga

Santa’s Sack

Lung

Spill

Southern Alps

By the Sea of Galilee, Israel (taken by Stefanie)

Bull Terrier

Dancing with the Stars

Harbour Islands

Thoroughbred

Out of the Game

Dancing Brolga

Signature

After Bruegel’s Blind Leading the Blind

Colonial Ties

Some Roses are White

Salmon

Collision Course

Horseshoe Crab

Sapling

Leather Jacket

Comet

Love Under Fire

Ice-cream

Stork

Texas Devil

Angler

Witch Travel

Intersections

Eruption

Mouse Outside the House

Dash

Dementor

Circus

The Gathering of the Clans

Satellite

The Arts Centre

Battlefield

Bilateral Amputee, Juggling

James Lawrence Levine

Drunk Conductor

Moa Startled by the Sound of a Frog, near Rawiri Bay

Alison Preparing the Duck

Jumping Rat

Angel Fish Parting Ways

Emergence

Bat and Quokka

Late Advent

Grover

Moonrise

Buddha

Natalie

Shoes with Straps

Godot’s Tree 2

Terrier

Excited

Angel Fish

Porthole

A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed

Hound

Fireball

Brachyura

The Place of the Skull

Stoat

Rabbit

Swing the Baby

Harry on his Nimbus 2000

Scorpio

Hummingbird

Marlin

Anselm Kiefer

Armed Soldier

Glide

The Beach

Leonard

Landscape

Seahorse

Knight

Adam Ant

Determined Woman (with Mary Somerville)

Communion

Emu Running

Mountaineer

Pod

Heidegger

Pelvis

Godot’s Tree 1

Satellite 18

Turn my back on the devil

Graham’s Cross

I will build a great wall – and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me – and I’ll build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall …