And Lagertha is building again too.
Now that the first set of Bluebird babies has fledged, she is ready to give it another go, and has started to fill the box with nesting material again.
Video: Blue Jay collecting nesting material
A Blue Jay is collecting nesting material (the suet cage contains wool from a bird store, grass and roots).
Today was fledge day!
All five Bluebird babies left their cradle on this hot and humid May day. And I only saw one of them do it, and missed to take a photo because I was excitedly talking to my husband haha. What happens is quite interesting. The babies start calling the parents, and the parents reply. It goes back and forth, back and forth for a while, and with each response, the babies become more excited and get out of the hole more. In between it can happen that the parents make a warning call and everything goes back to zero. The babies take naps in between, too. The first one went quickly, the other four took their good time. The parents went back to check on them but did not feed or take diapers anymoire. I cleaned the box and hung it back up so that Lagertha can build another nest. Here is one photo of a baby peeking out, and another one of the nest. It was quite moist and dirty, and I am glad I took it out so Lagertha can have a fresh start with no blowfly larvae or dirt.
Fledge day is always special, and today it felt like watching a long birth. The courage these babies must muster to take the literal leap must be quite enormous. I am so happy they all made it and cannot wait to see them again.
