New kid on the block

Until last week or so, he patroled one block south, but now he's strutting up and down our street, too, doing his call-and- response with the other early birds you can hear from 5 a.m. or so.

His "Ai-a-raii-oh" is a far cry from cockadoodle-doo (where did people come up with that, anyway?), and quite distinct, once you become a rooster connoisseur, from the calls coming from Duval House down the block, or from over on Olivia.

It's a pity Katha Sheehan's Chicken Store has flown the coop, replaced by a condo, of all things. She had a ton of things themed to our fowl climate, including the phenomenally popular "I like cocks" and "I like chicks" bumper stickers.

She did not, however, carry the sticker I've seen around town and now want for myself: "I love Key West's chickens . . . with black beans and rice."