The (a?) dead bird was dangling from a short rope. It had been hung up by its legs on a small stake pegged in the middle of the flowerbed.
Не совсем понятно, ДО этого птица упоминалась или нет, хотя первое более вероятно, судя по порядку слов.

That’s the first sentence in the book and the first point of discussion.

Ага! Значит, A dead bird...

No!))) This is a very popular device in the narrative style. The writer will start the story with a definite topic as a way of referring to something that HE knows about and YOU will soon know. That's why some stories start with lines like: THE house was totally dark except for one little candle in a corner of the living room. -or- THE old man sat at his desk, looking at an old photo of a girl with a tear in his eye. -or- THE rain had been coming down steadily for two hours. This is one form of expression that doesn't work in actual speech, but in stories, there's an unwritten agreement between the author and the reader: "be patient and read on - it will all make sense."

The rest is very good)))

However, I would simplify things and just say "a small stake _ in the middle of the flowerbed." (again THE flowerbed because it's not just any flowerbed - it's the one in our story)

If you WANT to be more specific, say DRIVEN instead of PEGGED 😉

Excellent start! 👍🏼

>>However, I would simplify things and just say "a small stake _ in the middle of the flowerbed....
Я, между прочим, думала об этом. Но перевесило то, что колышек, возможно, ВБИЛИ именно для дохлой вороны.
Если бы мне на ум пришло driven, я выбрала бы его. 😉🙏

Good reasoning. In that case you can even say THAT HAD BEEN DRIVEN into the middle... to show that it was deliberate.

Да, была мысль использовать не past participle, a the past perfect passive.) ☺️🙏

Excellent!

Now you can come up with a translation.

You mean I can edit and post my translation?

Yep. Post it in the comments first if you want me to check it.

А это мы легко!)))
The dead bird was dangling from a short rope. It had been hung up by its legs on a small stake that had been driven in the middle of the flowerbed.

INTO the middle. Otherwise PERFECT!!

...from a short (section of) rope

When we say ROPE, we tend to think of a long one, so sometimes we refer to just a SECTION of rope.

A section of a rope! Что ни слово, то открытие! 🙏

A piece of rope нельзя?

Hahahahahaha тоже можно, второй выбор