Nest Updates

In case you've been wondering, I want to update you on how our bird parents are doing.

The Robin with the nest in the roll of fencing is doing quite well.
(except when I occasionally visit and she has a conniption.  So I never stay long!

The babies don't seem to mind me though.  They were pretty sleepy this morning when I took these photos!

The Phoebe family, as I feared, did not make out so well with their nest on a nail.

If they try the same spot again, they will find this shelf I put up for them.  Hopefully, that will be safer!

We have a House Wren's nest in our little box under our Hemlock tree.  I hope they are nesting there, because I can see it from my kitchen window.  I hear the male wren singing, which is so lovely, but I have not actually seen a bird going in and out of the box.  I've been watching... but haven't had too much time to do that, and so far they have eluded me.  I'm hoping they are using this nest.  Did you know the male House Wren typically makes several nests and the female gets to pick the one she likes best?  Then she may even rebuild it to suit herself, as she is going to be the one to incubate the eggs!

Wrens really fill up the space with twigs.  I just read that there are sometimes over 700 twigs in one wren's nest!  Now, that's a busy bird!

Another bird's nest I can see from my kitchen window is one of our Baltimore Orioles.  

They are still coming to eat from our grape jelly feeder.  But they also are incubating eggs (as far as I can tell from their activity, since I can't see into their nest which is high in a cherry tree!)

Look closely and you can see the Mama Oriole's head sticking out at the top right side of the nest.

Next, we have a nesting story that I haven't quite figured out.  We have three bluebird boxes near our vegetable garden.  Three... to try to quell the competition for them a bit.  In early spring we were trying to fight off the House Sparrows (removing their nests) so the Bluebirds or Tree Swallows could use the boxes.  Bluebirds came, but left.  Sad!  But this week, they've been back!  However, so have the House Sparrows.  I'm not sure what is going to happen.  The Bluebirds have been checking out all three boxes (the Tree Swallows gave up the box they were trying to use and instead are nesting in one box by our driveway and one in the hayfield).

The Robin is sitting on top, just because it's a nice spot to use to look for worms, and the House Sparrow is looking out of the box.  Poor male Bluebird is not very happy with either!

The House Sparrow (a male) comes out to see what's going on.

There are three boxes... all available, why can't you each just pick a different one?

I shouldn't have favorites, I guess, but I hope the Bluebirds win out. 

After the House Sparrow flew away, this is what the male Bluebird did.  So I think he is still hoping to use this box.

Then he posed on the fence post.  Do you think he knows he's beautiful? 

"Which is my better side?  Or are both equally beautiful?"

Then he flew down and sat and sang on my clothesline.  Good thing I had not hung out my sheets yet.  Though, I would forgive him if I had to re-wash them!

Also, another nest update -- all three places where Painted Turtles laid their eggs are still intact as of this morning.  Even the one I helped by putting them into the ground!