I watch the birds at my feeder
and I notice their pecking order.
Woodpeckers are always at the top.
They fly in with a force 
that dominates and scatters
all the other birds.
The bluejays are next.
They demand that others must leave
when they arrive.
Mourning doves follow
and they are greedy and piggish.
They sit and stay and keep others away.
Next are the cardinals,
then the chickadees, titmice and finches.
The little wrens usually wait
and grab a crumb that’s left.
There’s a definite pecking order 
and the birds abide by it
Even within each “race” 
there seems to be a pecking order.
Some birds simply like to dominate.
That includes many of the males.
Others have learned to wait their turn—
they rarely challenge the system.
The pecking order seems to 
promote and sustain
a type of racism, sexism
and even classism.
Is such behavior learned
or is it innate....or both?
I wonder.
Observe the pecking order system.
Where do you fit in?