It's been a birdy time here on the porch as we watch two new families starting out. The wrens have already hatched their brood, while the summer tanagers are still waiting--although I think today might be the day for the tanagers to hatch. I base that on their behavior. The father bird has been in the area and has been very protective, running off any bird that comes near the nest tree, but has not bothered the female on her nest. According to my bird book, the male sometimes feeds the female while she is setting but not always. But they will feed her and be active around the nest on Hatch Day. So today the male is very much in evidence at the nest, so we shall see. I have not been taking photos of this activity as the nest is hard to see and photos would not come out well, I think, but I may try it later.
The Carolina wren's babies have hatched and she is busily feeding them. Maybe the male wren is too; I'm not sure I can tell the difference between them.
The wrens chose this gourd, hanging in the cherry tree by the deck, for their home.
A parent arrives and scopes out the area. Any movement, and the bird will fly off and scold from a distance.
And in they go...
and back out again, to find more grub, presumably.
These babies are very quiet. We literally never hear a peep out of them. I hope we will be around for the babies' maiden flight from the nest.
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I hope you get to see them take their first flights :)
ReplyDeleteYou've made me realize I haven't noticed the phoebes' nest under the eave of my workshop this year...I'll have to go have a peek. Maybe they are there again but I've just been spending more time indoors than usual due to this stultifying weather, and haven't been seeing them swoop around.
I hope your weather has improved!
The wrens here love to boss me around.
ReplyDeleteTheir favorite activity seems to be eating the bugs off the car hood and grill when I come home.
I enjoyed your post!
How sweet you are for providing a home for the parents to live in while raising a new batch. You're a better person than I am I'm afraid. The birds try to take over our front enclosure each year, and they make a terrible mess while sitting on the hanging lantern above the front door. If they would just choose an area a little farther away we could reside together in peace!
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