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What was that bird thinking???


AccuTron

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Something reminded me of a minutes-long YouTube video I saw a couple of years ago.  No idea of the link and you'd have as good a chance of finding it as I.

 

 

It was taken by a tourist waiting at a Disney monorail station.  A curved bit of track led into the station and the monorail train should've already docked.  It was stopped only dozens of feet away, because a squirrel had decided to perch on a rail ledge that the train’s lower edge would scoot right over.  No human access was possible.  It seemed an impasse, as the squirrel impassively showed little inclination to move.  Cute at first, it soon became awkward.

 
But then a bird, can’t recall what kind, maybe a type of black bird, flew down to nudge and harass the squirrel forward.  It fluttered and hopped at the squirrel from the far side, and the S would move a few paces towards the station and stop.  The train would creep forward.  The B would flutter at the S again, which would move a few paces again, which brought the B to flutter again, as the train inched forward again…this went on a long time, but it worked, and when the train could freely move again, the crowd cheered.  
 
 
Why did that bird care in the first place?
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It just dawned on me that the bird might have had a nearby nest.

 

 

The bird seems to be a mockingbird, I live in south Florida and these are fairly common in my area, in fact several live in the trees around my house and have made nests there. These birds are extremely territorial, I have seen them harass cats, and much bigger crows and even people if they get to close.

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No, I don't think he made it up. I just think it's silly that by saying it's a woman that it's sort of a given that explains everything. Just made me roll my eyes, is all.

 

The driver being a woman explains why the squirrel isn't an eighth of an inch thick and still on the track right now. (according to the guy)

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The driver being a woman explains why the squirrel isn't an eighth of an inch thick and still on the track right now. (according to the guy)

I think any driver would know that for a Disney machine to run over little Squeaky Squirrel would be a public relations disaster.  Heck, now that I think of it, I wouldn't put it past Disney to have installed animatronic birds for chasing off squirrels.  Oh Lord, it could've been an animatronic squirrel....

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I think any driver would know that for a Disney machine to run over little Squeaky Squirrel would be a public relations disaster.

I suspect that happens every now and then. If the monorail had hit the squirrel between stations there would probably be no way for the public to tell. If they were found out, I think patrons would accept an apology and expression that it was an unavoidable accident. The only way I can see it being a PR problem was if it were somehow revealed that running over the animal was done with malicious intent.

 

I think the driver's decision was excellent from the perspective of the Disney brand image. The passengers certainly agreed and had no problem with the delay. And they got a positive video to go viral.

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