outwitted by chickens
The Bird Who Killed the Tiger
Like my earlier book, The Shark Sessions, Outwitted by Chickens comprises eight years of intensive observation of wildlife, in this case junglefowl, the living ancestor of domestic chickens. With a foreword by Dr. Lynne U. Sneddon, it tells the story of what happened after a chick with one wing was delivered to my clinic for distressed seabirds in Tahiti.
We acquired two more chicks to keep her company, and they grew up into highly bred fighting cocks. When they fought, the loser went wild, while the winner sired a flock who lived naturally in our big garden. Outwitted by Chickens describes the events that followed, and the individuals who shaped them.
Being highly social, their communication skills are exceptional. The birds talked about everything that concerned them: sounds, possible dangers, other individuals, their wishes and needs, their likes and dislikes, and the weather, using tone of voice, eye-contact, and gestures to enhance the meaning of each remark. Junglefowl are also gifted at the art of deception. Countless surprising events reveal the high intelligence of these under-rated birds. In the end we find them to be more intelligent than the crow family.
Yet they are despised in our society.
The birds are under constant threat of being stolen by the local cock thieves, so the effort to protect them is an important theme in the book. Their natural combativeness is too. The birds' extraordinary fighting abilities are explored in depth. They must have been honed by fighting with predators, which would have led directly to the survival of the best fighters and their offspring. At the same time the birds could not be more devoted to the care and protection of the hens and chicks, showing an unexpected parallel with our own species, in their contrasting expressions of love and conflict.
In the foreword, Dr. Lynne U. Sneddon, Director of Bioveterinary Science, University of Liverpool, UK, writes:
"If you are a bird lover, a keeper of chickens, a conservationist, an animal welfare scientist, an undergraduate or postgraduate student or are fascinated by animals and their relationship with humans then this book is ideal to understand how we can care for and save an intelligent animal from harmful exploitation. Ila France Porcher writes with great insight into the biology of these animals and carefully explains how she came to know chickens through the many jungle fowl she encountered, and how she tried to save them from the cruel and inhumane sport of cockfighting. The author is one of the truly great natural historians of our times and a hero for all of us who value animals and want to safeguard the existence of these animals and their welfare. Outwitted by Chickens is an invaluable addition to our understanding of jungle fowl and chicken behaviour and will enable all readers to have a deeper appreciation of their behavioural needs, social bonds, and the care they need to thrive."
Reviews:
Jonathan Balcombe, best-selling author of What a Fish Knows, and Super Fly wrote:
More than anything else I’ve read about chickens, this book conveys the personality, the individuality, the trials and the triumphs—in short, the rich lives—that these birds live when given a chance. I have watched chickens living as chickens ought, and like the birds described on these pages they draw as deeply from life as any other bird I know.
Lynn Kirk, animal health technician and registered shiatsu therapist, wrote:
Ila has a unique ability to take the reader inside her world, a world in which she develops intimate connections with species of animals most of us see as threats, or food sources. She achieved this in "The Shark Sessions," “The Spirit of Wild Ducks,” and again here in “Outwitted by Chickens”. Her fastidious attention to detail allows us to comprehend the steps involved in befriending individual members of these three species; she even gives each one a name. We grow to so strongly empathize with these individuals that we cannot help but face full-on the extent of suffering they endure as a result of human cruelty.
A process of gradual healing occurs for many in the flock Ila has rescued from threats present in their daily environment. Males get injured during fights for leadership (although Ila discovers this happens less frequently in the wild, than in confined spaces) or may be stolen by thieves for cock fighting. Other dangers often encountered are being run over by vehicles, being picked up by harriers or injured by dogs. They can also easily succumb to the many circulating viruses. Ila sets broken bones, applies antiseptics and bandages to wounds, treats eye damage, allergic reactions, holds and cuddles. Her arm is readily available as a perch for birds unable to maneuver on their own. Nothing is too much of a challenge for Ila, and her amazing husband Franck puts up with minor inconveniences like their bathroom being taken over for roosting by injured birds! Always, for Ila, at the base of these extraordinary nursing skills, is a desire to see her birds living the free jungle life which is their birthright.
“Monsieur LeBlanc”, blinded during a fight, is one spectacular member of the junglefowl species rescued by Ila. Through her care and support, he gradually develops a renewed level of confidence. She learns through his vocalizations and gestures what he is telling her. “He was gesturing to communicate an idea, using a symbol of it chosen spontaneously, to tell me what was in his mind—a symbolic communication. Similarly, he would perform an exaggerated imitation of drinking to ask for water when he was thirsty. In slow motion he would reach down with his beak, appear to drink a long sip of water, raise his head with his beak upwards, and swallow.” What is perhaps even more extraordinary is the strength of the love bond he, as well as other cocks in her flock, develop towards her. Ila became his preferred hen!
For me, this was a confirmation of what I had learned about the corvid family, that no matter how small a brain is, it is the density of neurons packed together in it that determines the level of cognition, and emotion. I appreciate now, after reading this book, that corvids are elevated to such a high standard of intelligence over chickens because it is useful to industry to perceive the latter as stupid. This justifies our factory farming practices of cramming them in to such crowded conditions they have no room to move. In order to treat them this way, we must not believe they can think or have feelings of any kind.
Along with the education we receive related to junglefowl, we are treated to enticing tidbits about the life of other species, most of us relate to as alien. Eels are one example. Ila explains how they are guided by instinct along incredibly long and arduous journeys through underground water channels back to their original breeding grounds.
As Ila’s herculean efforts to protect her birds from thieves progresses, she moves her observation station from one location up the mountain to an even higher one, to a point just before the foliage becomes too thick to traverse. This involves many trips down and back up carrying her birds and equipment. Despite this expenditure of energy, she finds time during the daylight hours to work on portraits she has been commissioned to paint. Fortunately, she has a particularly affectionate hen, “Snowflower” that cuddles closely with her during long nights in the shelter. The beauty of this lush volcanic island begins to cast a spell on the reader.
In the final chapter of her book Ila places art and beauty in its rightful place along with science in demonstrating that all life is actually designed the same way. We humans are not special for our ability to respond to the splendor of sunsets. One of her chickens just before death rises to look across the sea “shimmering with rainbow colours.” Neither do we humans have a special mastery over music. Birds, expert singers as they are, have been dipping into “Plato’s world” described by Ila as one “we can access only through our consciousness, where the transcendent laws of mathematics, physics, chemistry, music, beauty, and maybe even ethics, lie” long before we, homo sapiens, were anywhere near the stage of walking upright.
I was filled with a mixture of exquisite sadness and then unexpected wonder throughout the reading of this book.
Artistic genius merges with an astute knowledge of contemporary science and respect for all living organisms throughout Ila’s writing and I, for one, am grateful that she shares her discoveries with the rest of us. Yet, she writes, “anyone could repeat my approach of letting healthy chickens live natural lives while taking notes on their behaviour as it unfolds” but I am not sure anyone has, or will. . . just saying.
Thank-you Ila for being the one who did this for chickens and for having done this also for sharks and ducks.
Joan Gale, Canadian wildlife advocate, wrote:
This unique book, Outwitted by Chickens: The Bird Who Killed the Tiger, by Ila France Porcher, is an adventure and an education in itself. When you begin to read, you immediately join the author and "live" with her and her experiences as she devotes herself to the flocks in a most loving way. Every experience is written in detail and described perfectly. You will see that the author cares deeply for each chicken. If a cock or hen is injured, she takes her time to help and treat the injury and watch over the bird continually until it is healed. You will find that you do not want to put this book down. You become involved! You WANT to read on.
You will learn that chickens express love. As an example, I was impressed by Josephine and her mate, Diamond. After Diamond died, Josephine never took another mate because she had bonded with Diamond. This gifted writer reveals and shares some more real-life examples of love and other traits.
Chickens are intuitive, smart, sensitive, protective, caring, express emotions, and are CLEAN, I learned. They also communicate with each other and even with the author! Fascinating! Do read and you will see!
This book inspires those who read it because it reveals the truth about animals and birds. That is, animals and birds are LIFE and should be respected and protected, not tortured or abused in any way. It is time all of us realized that LIFE is ALL LIFE.
One important point, this book and other books about animals that this brilliant author, Ila France Porcher, has written should be included in today's school curriculums or educational programmes. These books should be required reading for all students at all levels.
You will enjoy the illustrations/photos. They are outstanding!
I highly recommend this exceptional book. It is to be treasured indeed. This author gave so much of herself and her time to study these chickens that we should express much gratitude and many thanks to her.
Dr. Ramakrishna Venkatasamy, EnviroSolutions Ltd, Mauritius, wrote:
Ila France Porcher never stops surprising us with her ability to explore the deeper recesses of wildlife minds. This time she takes us through the minds of junglefowl, the little known ancestors of our common chicken, and through countless detailed accounts of their complex actions, reveals their personalities and their personhood.
Further, Ila exposes how these innocent and majestic birds are used and abused for human pleasure in some parts of the world, in the cruel and unacceptable practice of cockfighting. A must read for those who were not aware of the real natural behaviour of wild chickens (junglefowl).
Rayne Jacobsen, Canadian wildlife advocate, wrote:
If one thought that “chickens” lacked intelligence, feeling, reasoning ability, family life or survival skills, Ila France Porcher’s book, “Outwitted by Chickens” will change your view. It is a must read!
While I was reading, my feelings and attitude toward a chicken’s life, those birds who are treated so despicably in our modern world, did a 180-degree turn. They are more than food on our table.
Thank you Ila. This book is long in coming. Chickens are sentient beings and we quickly learn to respect them as we read. They interact with each other in the most caring ways. Ila gives each bird a name and each is recognized as an individual. Babalu and Kubilai stand out in my mind but there are many more.
It is a novel and you are pulled into the story as day-to-day life is described. There are high points and low points, mystery and suspense. You will learn how difficult it is to care for a huge injured bird, a giant petrel, but the effort is made. The book is not just about caring for injured birds but also about the emotions of animals as they work to find a life in which it is safe to create a family.
The reader will learn things about junglefowl never heard of or experienced by most of us. Ila describes in minute details her interactions with each individual chicken to relieve its suffering or just to give it confidence and love. Yes, love. Day-to-day journalling had to be done when you read the details. It amazed me how each chicken returned the kindness and helpful gestures given to him or her by Ila.
Ila took on the task of caring for injured birds; injured either from natural causes or from being put in a fighting ring. Though fighting is a natural behavior in the male birds, the Islanders take advantage of this trait as a form of entertainment and gamble. One has empathy for the birds as most die of their injuries.
To care for an animal like a chicken is heroic and there must have been a long learning period on how this should be done. Learn along with Ila as she describes the procedures needed to stop the suffering. Selflessness toward chickens is clearly shown. Such energy overwhelms me and changes me for the better.