Community Personalities
Sea Birds: These community birds are strictly audience members. They soar over head lurking but never landing. They are avid readers taking it all in. Don't discredit the importance of these members because they never post. Sea Birds are just as much a part of the message board community as everyone else and are swayed in opinion and politics. Sea Birds are one post away from becoming an informed Fledgling anytime they want.

Fledgling: This is a brand new poster to the message board. Sometimes a Fledgling has just arrived and writes a post without testing the waters. Other times, a Fledgling has been lurking for weeks or months, just reading the board before they write their first contribution. Fledglings usually have a hard time fitting in and are shy about sharing their opinions because they know the Chicken Hawks are out there.

Chicken Hawks: The type of posters just waiting for fresh young Fledglings to join the board so they can hit the reply button and swoop down upon them to make a kill!

If nothing else, this editorial will bring you clarity the next time you see a community response that confuses or infuriates you...



If nothing else, this editorial will bring you clarity the next time you see a community response that confuses or infuriates you. You won't have to take it personally, you'll just say to yourself "That's just a Chicken Hawk preying on some Magpies or Fledglings" or "There goes that Legal Eagle again with their supremacist views." And "That posts makes no sense to anyone, they're obviously a Cuckoo Bird who can't contribute in any other way." "There goes those Chickadees chatting away."

If you're going to spend hours of time looking at your computer screen instead of out the window, then you're going to have to do your bird watching online!

Described below are some of the most common of our feathered friends that you will find flocking and roosting on every message board community regardless of the subject. They are categorized by the types of responses or personality traits they display.  

Chicken Hawks: The type of posters just waiting for fresh young Fledglings to join the board so they can hit the reply button and swoop down upon them to make a kill! These are the types of posters who don't start many topics but compose slights or demeaning replies just for the sake of being mean. They think they're being witty and clever, though always at someone else's expense. Their easiest targets are usually the Fledglings who starts off with the "Hi, I'm new" salutations. Or, anyone who stands out from the crowd. Targets are posters with different or unique screen names, signature lines, icons - or anything the Chicken Hawk can use for the attack and kill. Usually a Chicken Hawk as been abused as a Fledglings before and is looking for revenge to heal their own insecure egos.

Magpies: There are 2 types of Magpies. Type one: The Heckle who spends most of their message board time jumping back and forth playing both sides of the fence with no real purpose but to get a rise out of their fellow posters. Type two: The Jeckle who sits on the fence with no real purpose but to disguise their own personal opinions. They are too afraid of the Chicken Hawks and the Legal Eagles to post their real thoughts and opinions. They don't want to offend anyone in fear of reprise or not being liked. They always say "I agree..." with whoever seems to have the power on the thread or the boards. These Magpies could take a Chicken Hawk or a Legal Eagle down if they were brave enough to take the position on the boards that they always seem to support in private. 
 
Lolla-Le-Lous: This is the peacock of the message board community. No matter what anybody on the board writes about, this is the poster who is constantly flaunting that they've been there and done it more times then you. Because you only have one feather and they have two! They are always trying to one up somebody with whatever privilege they can brag about that week.

The Ugly Ducklings: This is the "woe is me" poster on the board.  They are the exact opposite of Lolla-Le-Lou, but yet the same in the extreme. Their claim to fame is that no matter what crisis anybody may be going through on the board, they will always be able to down and out you. Whatever the topic on the board is, they reign supreme for conjuring up sympathy because nobody  could possibly be as ugly as them!

The Pigeons: These are the kind of posters that use your topic for a free handout. The "Me too! me too!" crowd. The thread usually starts with someone asking for a favor. Pigeons are the very first ones to set up a jump on the bandwagon thread, which means many pigeons come and flock to your thread. Pigeons are a really big nuisance because the ultimate result is, nobody can publicly ask anybody for anything in fear of being bombarded with pigeon poop on the stoop!

Cuckoo Bird: These are the poster who make no sense to anyone but themselves. And they always think that they are being funny. They write gibberish in the middle of a good thread that has no relevance to the topic. Their claim to fame is being looney or funny with their outlandish posts. Usually people just tolerate the Cuckoo Bird and in doing so reinforce the Cuckoo Bird's bad behavior by posting "LOL" and "You're so funny" to the odd bird's comments. The truth is, the Cuckoo Bird is funny the first time you hear their squawk, but after a while it just becomes annoying. Especially since they never contribute anything but gibberish jokes.         

Legal Eagles: These are the posters who try to convince everyone that their opinion is fact and should end all further discussion. They are the certified "know it all" in the board community. No matter what the topic, they're the expert. They also believe that everyone reveres them because they're the Eagle after all, but the truth is everyone is annoyed by their constant need to be right and wish they would just take flight! This type of poster usually crowns themselves with a moderator position.

Do Do Bird: You know this one, the Do Do Bird is the idiot of the message board community. Whatever the topic is you're writing about, they just don't get it now matter how clear you explain it. They don't get it, they can't see it and they write a lot of posts in blonde font. This is the kind of bird that makes you wonder how they made it this far? The Do Do Bird exploits themselves with their stupidity. They just keeps hanging around, asking dumb question and making stupid comments and you really just wish they would become extinct!

Blue Jay: One of the loudest and dominant members of the board. The one who rants and raves and stomps their feet over the smallest of issues. The Blue Jay just keeps coming back for more because they can't let it go. They also cry foul and victim when in reality they are the predators. The easiest targets for a Blue Jay are the Do Do Bird, The Ugly Duckling and the Legal Eagle because the Blue Jay likes confrontation. They like to take on anyone. The Blue Jay bookmarks the thread and checks back often to see if you've replied. They often boast proudly and try to rally other Blue Jays to join them in their attack. In the end, it's all a popularity contest to the Blue Jay and the Blue Jay always has to have the last word.

Mother Hen: This is the poster who's a regular member of the message board community and everybody seems to likes them. Their contribution is mostly to welcome the Fledglings, remember birthdays and to point out when Blue Jays and Chicken Hawks are being bad. They try to correct poor behavior when they wave their motherly finger in other poster's faces. The Mother Hen never stirs up controversy but is often lost reminiscing in the good old days of the message board. Usually posters don't pick on the Mother Hen because she's been there a long time and has made a lot of friends to defend her like the Magpies. The Mother Hen will never leave the nest no matter what you write, and she protects the message board at all costs, even when she's wrong. It always come back to the message board with this bird, meaning it's her nest, it's her home no one should dare violate it.  She spends a lot of time behind the scenes trying to rid the message board of pesky Blue Jays and Pigeons. On a lot of boards, this type of poster may be a moderator.   

The Vulture: Is the type of poster that jumps on a thread after the kill has been made to try and pick on the bones. After a Blue Jay, Legal Eagle or Chicken Hawk has taken down it's prey, The Vulture circles down to put their 2 cents in. They are not loud or brave enough to try and take down a prey by themselves so they come after and try to share in the meal. Vultures are tolerated because they don't start trouble, they are just Johnny come latelys who were never in the conversation and people wonder "Who are you? Where did you come from? And why are you in it?" They always wait patiently in the air circling until the battle is over and the blood has been spilled so they can be counted on the winning side. These are shiesty posters who spend a great deal of time lurking.

The Dove: This poster is the peace maker and the holier than thou presence on the message board community. This poster would never do anything wrong and is shocked by everything you write!  When the Dove's not blushing, they're holding out the olive leaf with posts that say "play nice." But don't be fooled, the Dove is usually a dirty bird in chatrooms and emails. You would never think it would come from the Dove, but those white feathers are just a mask they wear in public to gain acceptance in the community.

The Parrot: The parrot likes to look good in the webmaster's eye so they spend a great deal of time tattle tailing to the moderators or the webmaster about the on goings of the message board. They have the home phone numbers of these folks on their speed dials. The parrot likes to repeat conversations but often does not retell the whole story. To the average bird, they are seen as trouble makers and are sketchy users because they are not always reliable, but nobody will talk bad about the parrot in public because they are sitting on the webmaster's shoulder.  They can post whatever they want without fear of retribution and they never even bother trying to defend themselves. As long as they have the power of the board convinced that they are do gooders, the parrot is riding high.

Swamp Birds: Swamp Birds are not to be confused with The Ugly Ducklings. The Swamp Bird is high on themselves, but low on everybody else. Every post they write has a pessimistic tone. They are not woe is me, they are woe is you or us. They can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, everything always takes too long, costs too much, they are always complaining and they are always let down. No matter what you write about, they always point out that the bird feeder is half empty and there's a cat in the woods. The Swamp Bird can never seem to prevent themselves from posting the negative side. They accumulate many post and they assume the other birds like them because they are active, but the constant dismal gloom of doom over the head of every topic is just raining on every bird's parade. They bring the whole morale of the message board down and a lot of birds don't come back if there is a Swamp Bird around.

Night Owls: These are the posters who either live overseas or are insomniacs. They hunt at night and make a lot of posts around 3 a.m.  They can post whatever they want because by the time you see it, it is 12 hours later and you know you'll have to wait 12 more hours for them to see your response. It's impossible to debate with Night Owls because there's always on a delay. Owls also have the first opportunities to post breaking news. People usually wake up to find out the Night Owl has already informed the message board community. This makes them popular among the other birds, it's safe to say with all the complications of time differences, there's always tolerance for one Night Owl on every board.

Mocking Birds: They are the fakes and phonies of the message board community. The ones who use fake screen names to answer their own threads to appear they have more support for their cause, they repeat  what's already been said. Or they'll use a fake screen names because they are too insecure to argue their point under their known screen names. Nobody wants a Mocking Bird around but are sometimes hard to detect by inexperienced users.

Geese: Tend to exaggerate all of their comments and experiences. They are the king of BS. They'd be bold face liars if there wasn't some little truth to expand on in there posts. These birds are usually looking for some type of glory and response. They want to be famous among the message board community. Everyone knows they are full of it and their bad behavior is often reinforced by Pigeon replies such as "How excellent for you!" Geese are sometimes tolerated for their tall tales as entertainment by the Do Do Birds and the Cuckoo Birds.

The Migrators: These are the kind of birds who show up and are not fooled by anything. They are not embraced in the politics of the message board community but are able to detect all kinds of birds and their apparent behaviors because they've flown around a lot of neighborhoods. They are a fledgling on your board but are really seasoned migrators. They've traveled to your community from somewhere else, thus recognizing the patterns you fly in. Nobody likes these birds. They upset the balance of the whole community because they often point out all the tricks of the trade and no one likes to be told by a fledgling/migrator anything! They are the one poster who speaks up on every topic because they have nothing to lose and nothing to fear being a migrator, they know they won't be accepted so they don't make plans to stick around. But watch out because they will return when the weather grows cold for a temporary stay, next season.

Sparrows: These are the every day users who blend in, don't cause any trouble, socialize with everyone so they are easily tolerated and accepted. Sparrows tend to be a bit boring if there are too many of them. Sparrows accumulate many posts but don't really have much to say. Their contribution to the community is that they are always, around and make up the majority of the community. The audience so to speak. These birds are big readers. They read every post and respond selectively.

Chickadees: Chickadees are members of the audience but they have a different agenda. Chickadees tend to be annoying because they use the message board to have one line chats with other chickadees. A few chickadees at the feeder can take over and spend a long time talking about nothing. Their idle chatter back and forth is exclusive to their own kind. Chickadees talk short and fast and usually congregate together. At the end of an hour a chickadee can rack up 100 posts easily from using a message board as a chatroom with fellow chickadees. They are exhibitionist who perform for the Sparrows. Chickadees tend to write more then they read, they avoid lengthy posts and topics that call for opinion, debate or thought in their replies. Chickadees lack respect for other birds at the feeder but are popular because they are recognized by their screen names and their abundance of posts.    

Fledgling: This is a brand new poster to the message board. Sometimes a Fledgling has just arrived and writes a post without testing the waters. Other times, a Fledgling has been lurking for weeks or months just reading the board before they write their first contribution. Fledglings usually have a hard time fitting in and are shy about sharing their opinions because they know the Chicken Hawks are out there. Everyone is a Fledgling at one point or another but nobody seems to remember when they were one. Fledglings are not received with a lot of respect because the other birds are skeptical of their intent at the feeder. A Fledgling and a Blue Jay can write the exact same post and the Fledgling will receive no responses from the Sparrows while the Blue Jay will receive tons, on screen name recognition alone.  

Kakapo: These birds have roost on the message board longer then anyone else. Their contribution is not always pertinent. These posters have seniority and are usually well known amongst the community. Some Kakapo's have long since lost interest on the main subject of the message board but can't or won't leave. They have an identity through the message board and friendships that keeps them coming back. They are very predictable in their posts. And have no real contribution or purpose. Sometimes a Kakapo is an Administrator Host or Moderator.

Frigate Bird: The Frigate Bird is easily excitable. They are known for the swoop and dive tactic. They drop in on any thread and turn the topic of the post into some irrelevant personal diatribe. This is also known as hijacking a thread. Frigate Bird's can be spammers as well, writing the same post on four forums on the board. Cutting and pasting to promote their agenda. Nobody likes a Frigate Bird. They reroute conversations to suite their own needs.
  
Raven: This stalking bird is usually more interested in the users then they are the subject. Most of the time they focus on one particular bird. Ravens comment after you on every post either with praise or contempt. The victim bird often feels like they are being followed around the message board, or that they are being stalked by a Raven. This is when a kiss up can be just as annoying as a cut down. Ravens can be pretty scary at times because you can never tell what their true intent is. Ravens will usually contact you by email and try to get you to indulge in more personal information about yourself. The only tactic that will bring any success is to ignore the Raven. But beware when they are not posting, they are usually lurking trying to single out their next prey. 

Humming Bird: These are one of the more positive birds on the board. They flit around from post to post replying with niceties and optimistic tones. Because they're so small, it takes a lot of humming birds to rise above the cackles of the more negative birds. Humming birds are always welcomed and useful because they produce a lot of conversation and have an interesting way of keeping the topic alive. Humming birds are self reliant so they don't need much back from the board in order to be successful. They just buzz over to the next topic or subject with a merry response.   

Sea Birds: These community birds are strictly audience members. They soar over head lurking but never landing. They are avid readers taking it all in. Don't discredit the importance of these members because they never post. Sea Birds are just as much a part of the message board community as everyone else and are swayed in opinion and politics. Sea Birds are one post away from becoming an informed Fledgling anytime they want.  
 
The design of a message board community was intended to replace features that were no longer adequate holding the conversations of frequent visitors to websites. 

What it has developed into is a place that attracts those who enjoy posturing, debating, taunting and passive-aggressive behaviors. There are still many positive uses of a message board community if they are not over populated with selfish, narrow minded, uncaring users.

One thing proves true, message board communities brings out the best and the worst.  

If everyone in the community cared about the community as a whole, they would offer a level of respect to their fellow posters. Community members should police themselves instead of giving that power to somebody else.

If the bulk of the users were invested in the community and the conversations, they could contribute many positive attributes to the boards. Thought provoking comments and intelligent debates would replace one liners and diatribes. So, whether you are a frequent community users or an avid lurker, you should be able to get out your binoculars and use this as a field guide to do some eventful bird watching.

source