On Fawkes and the Forest

[coderaspberry77]

No: HPFGUIDX 106536

Just finished CoS for the third time last night - I admit it, I'm 
still looking for that one little clue that JKR mentioned was laying 
around somewhere in it's pages.  It was a couple of other minor 
things, however, that caught my attention.

First, and I know this has been discussed before, but it just seems 
to me that Fawkes is REALLY smart for a bird.  I mean, we know 
Hedwig is smart for an owl, but during the battle with the 
Basilisk/Riddle, Fawkes knows exactly what Harry needs at exactly 
the right moment - very complex thought processes for, let's face 
it, a bird.  "Here's a strange talking hat, Harry - you'll be able 
to find a magical sword in it, since you're likely the heir of 
Gryffindor."  "Here's the diary, Harry - I notice you've procured a 
basilisk fang, which is poisionous, and if you stab that magical 
diary which contains the memory of a wizard from 50 years ago, this 
evil apparition trying to kill you and the girl will be no more."

Now, even if DD had given explicit instructions to Fawkes concerning 
Harry, the hat, and the sword before he left, he could only have 
guessed about Riddle, the basilisk, the diary, and what not.  So 
Fawkes obviously had to do some analysis on his own.  

Smart bird.  VERY smart.  My question - are magical creatures always 
that intelligent (they don't ALWAYS seem that way - Skrewts :) ), is 
it just phoenixes that are that bright, or is Fawkes something 
more?  I really liked the "Fawkes could be Gryffindor" theory posted 
not long ago, though I don't necessarily believe it.


On to the other thing:

Is it just me, or does the Forbidden Forest seem very conveniently 
placed?  I mean, which was there first - the school of witchcraft 
and wizardry, or the forbiddeness of the forest?  What I mean to say 
is that you can ask two questions:

1)  Did the large concentration of witches/wizards nearby attract 
all the strange and wonderful (and dangerous) creatures to the 
nearby forest?  Are there crazy things in all "wizarding" forests?  
If so, how do Muggles not end up wandering into them and getting 
slain by Werewolves, spiders, irate Centaurs, or whatever?  I 
suppose this may ACTUALLY happen, but it seems unlikely.

2)  Who in their right mind builds a school for inquisitive, curious 
kids near something that dangerous?

I guess my question is this:  Why is the Forbidden Forest the way it 
is?  Is it unique, or are other forests (like the one in Albania) 
just as dangerous, but more separated from civilization?  Is it just 
a handy thing for JKR to have around, in case she needs a tense 
setting?

Geoff, who's generally afraid of ominous looking bushes, let alone 
big creepy forests