Nestbox news: Everybody is thriving
The temperatures are very lovely at the moment, not too hot, not too cool. The garden is visibly regaining juice and strength, and the Bluebird babies are thriving. I was so happy to see that the fourth egg hatched yesterday in the morning too. I hope with only four, the runt will quickly catch up. Also, believe it or not, I am still fascinated and enamoured watching this whole process even if it is the third time this season. Bluebirds are just so charming and entertaining. Here it looks like Gayle does not really like Mr. Business to come in and feed the babies. But at the same time, she is also quickly following him when he leaves. He does get his alone time with te babies too, though.
Video: Everybody has a sweet tooth!
I still have lots of Orioles coming, and the funny part is that this year, many more birds are seemingly having a sweet tooth and give the grape jelly a try. I have never seen a Cowbird doing it until yesterday.
Nestbox news: Welcome, brood 3!
I suspected that hatching would happen soon when I saw some marks on the eggs late yesterday. And this morning at around 6, the babies started hatching. This is brood 3 for Gayle and Mr. Business. The babies from the second clutch are also still around and I wonder if maybe this time they will help raising the babies. The Wren guard is still in place even if I have not heard a Wren in forever. We had awful heat here in the last couple of days but today, it broke, and I actually ave the windows open. Here’s to a smooth rest of August.
Update August 10 - this morning, the last baby hatched as well.
hatching Eastern Bluebirds in nestbox
Video: Feeder choice
can determine what crowd comes to visit a backyard, and this summer, I have been a bit overrun by larger birds. As you know I love the Grackles, and they usually keep to themselves and eventually migrate, but Blue Jays and MoDos have been particularly dominating this summer. The other day I realized that I haven’t seen a Chickadee or Nuthatch or even Downy Woodpecker in a long time, and they used to be regulars here and I miss them. Usually, I have a big platform feeder and then several smaller stations in different spots and some food on the ground. They are fun for watching but once the MoDos feel comfortable, they will just hang out there and let noone else in. The same goes for my camera feeders. The small bowls hold about two Doves, and that has been most of what I have been getting in photos lately. So in an effort to bring back diversity, I pulled out the smaller, more restrictive feeders, like this one from Kingsyard, that especially Doves cannot access. They try, the rumble you hear here is the MoDo landing on the nut container I placed over this camera for poop protection. The Blue Jays are not happy but they are less clumsy and will still find ways to enter a feeder. And lo and behold - these Goldfinches came yesterday, and this morning I heard Chickadees. I thought this clip was funny because there is also so much going on in the back with Groundhog and Gracks.
Have a great Sunday!
Videos: Babies, babies, babies!
Apart from the Blue Jays and Grackles, there are also young Robins, Woodpeckers and Cardinals. They are still curious and will visit all the feeders to see what is offered. Sometimes, this results in little dominance fights, like with the Robin and Canado here. The Robin has particularly pretty markings too.
The last video is not a bird, but an Opossum mommy that regularly shows up at night. And it looks like her belly pouch is full of little ones! She has quite the waddle going on, and I hope the babies will soon climb out there to get on her back. Well, and that she comes for a visit then too.
As you know, I am using Birdsy cameras around my yard to record feeders and the bird bath. Their website birdsy.com is the headquarters of BirdsyTV, a platform where Birdsy users can share their videos and live cams from their accounts. I have several channels there too and you can also find these videos there. I love visiting the site to check out other people’s setups, get entertained and inspired. And it is fun to see birds from Europe too! Check it out if you have the time.
Nestbox news: Four for three!
Gayle has continued to lay eggs in the last couple of days. Today, she did not, which means that the third clutch of the season will have four eggs. She will now start to incubate. Mr. Business brings her the occasional snack and the babies from the last brood are also still hanging around. I am leaving the Wren guard up for good luck even if I have not heard or seen a Wren since we brought the babies to the rehabber. (The rehabber told me today they are doing great.) Maybe once it is removed, the second clutch will help feeding the last set of babies to get them strong faster. I like how the nest looks this time around, a very elegant paler grass nest.
Video: The hummingbirds
are making themselves really rare this year. I hear it is not just me, everybody seems to see less. I am not giving up hope, traditionally I have seen an uptick in activity by late July and August and even into September. So I am keeping the feeders clean and refilled. The Allura feeder that I was sent has proven to be very pleasant and practical because it is so easy to clean and has not given me any issues with ants or spills, and I don’t have to make huge batches of nectar that never get used. At least the baby Orioles are explory enough to come and visit. I am streaming this camera on BirdsyTv (birdsy.com), and hopefully there will be some hummer visitors at some point. The Allura feeder is available on Amazon.
Nestbox news: Hatch day for the House Wrens
The Wren babies are hatching today. So far, four out of the six eggs have hatched, and one bird has removed the top shell that was sitting on one of the unhatched eggs, so that one can safely hatch as well. Interestingly enough the female has not eaten the shells like I usually see with the Bluebirds. The nice side effect is that the male seems to be more busy feeding the kidlets now than obsessing over the Bluebird box or finding another girlfriend (not a single visit at the BB house today!).
It is so cute how the Wrens make their little noises when they bring food. I hope they stay that busy. (The BBs still train the babies survival but they have been coming back more in the last two days, so hopefully they will be more present for a third brood soon.)
Nestbox news: Good things need time
Four of the five Bluebird babies of the second brood have fledged over the last couple of days. The runt is still in the box, but hopefully, he will leave today, too. He has grown a lot, practises the wings and is taken care of by the parents. Here is a little clip of the middle three leaving. They all did late in the day, including the first one, and I did not manage to take photos of their first flight. The box is stained with mulberry, a poop sac left a smear on the lens and there are blowfly larvae in the nest too. I cannot wait to clean the box.
I spent a lot of time waiting for the fledge, and spent an entire day away from the computer, which was actually nice. There are new pictures coming but I need a bit of time to go through them.
Update: The runt took a glorious first flight this morning, the box is cleaned and maintained (I added a little mesh on the bottom to keep the nest slighly above the ground so blowfly larvae have it harder) and I rehung it in hopes for a third brood.
Nestbox news: Deco matching the walls
The House Wren has laid egg six this morning. She has been adorning the nest with feathers that she found around the property, and I like how her color choices match the walls.
The box is also a 6 inch diameter PVC box and I added two holes in Bluebird size and use a shrout with different hole sizes to adjust the box when necessary. The two holes provide better air flow and in the case of Bluebirds, might help the birds to escape a House Sparrow attack.
Come good into the weekend!
Nestbox news: The wreturn of the little terror
I have’t posted an update in a bit, so today is a good day. The babies are now 11 / 12 days old. Their eyes are open and their feathers are coming in, They grow by the minute thanks to Gayle and Mr. Business feeding them pretty much constantly. I was surprised to see them even feeding them mulberries but I was glad to see it too because the weather has been very hot and the mulberries I guess provide lots of moisture. When the last baby was 7 days old, I took the Wren guard off the box. It is recommended to take it off between day 5 and 10 after hatching. Then, the babies are big and heavy enough so that the Wren does not pose a threat anymore. Well, and yesterday, the Wren returned to check out the box. I edited the video a bit to make it shorter, but the Wren pretty much got in, tried to poke the babies and on the second try actually tried to yank one out. Thankfully, the baby was big enough so there was no way the Wren could finish the deed. The Wren in the other box has laid egg 2 by now. I hope that somehow between the Bluebirds fledging and Gayle starting nest 3, the Wren brood will keep them so busy that they don’t venture out again to check for nests. I will of course attach the Wren guard again too and hope it does it’s magic a second time.
Nestbox news: Day 4
A happy Father’s Day to all dads and father figures out there, including my own, a happy Juneteenth to everybody, and some nestbox news. The babies are now 4 days old. The weather has cooled down to lovely temperatures, the parents are finding lots of food in our garden, and things look great. I will keep the Wren guard up until day 7, just to be on the safe side. I am so happy this works.
Nestbox news: We have a hatchling!
Today was my calculated hatch day for Gayle and Mr. Business' brood 2, but the she was off the nest a lot due to extremely hot and humid weather, so I wasn't sure. But two hours ago, the first baby hatched. Welcome, little one, I hope your siblings follow. 💙
The House Wren also made it through the day with her three eggs. She got some extra shade by a William & Cate wedding day umbrella I got in London when they got married.
Video: Miami Vice in the house!
I find Cedar Waxwings fascinating, they are so beautiful with their cool Miami Vice look. They never visit my feeders and only show up in groups at certain times of the year, so I think I am extra excited to see them. I admit we also planted a lot of native bushes and plants to attract them so I would have photo opportunities, but everything is still small. Anyways, please enjoy this group at the bath.
Video: I put a little station
with nesting material on the chestnut tree to see if anybody would take some. Activity has been low on this camera, but the other day I saw something interesting. A female Cowbird came to inspect the material. She must have thought it was a nest. Brownheaded Cowbirds are so-called brood parasites. They lay their eggs in other birds’ nests and let them raise their young. Later in the season, the whole family will flock and migrate together. This was recorded with one of my Birdsy cameras. They are having a Memorial Day Sale right now too, go and check it out at birdsy.com.
Nestbox news: They're getting so big!
I have been slacking a bit with the videos, so today there's more than one. This is from two days ago, and I thought it was funny to see Gayle sitting with the babies for a bit. They are in the tufty stage here, with feathers growing all over the place. At times it looked like mommy was plucking some of the tufts away but I am not sure if that is actually the case. Of course, once Mr. Business arrives, it's all mayhem again.
This is also from May 9. Here you can see the babies preening and stretching. They look so cool with the different colors and textures happening. The new feathers are encased in sheaths, almost like in a straw, and when the babies nibble that off, "feather dust" is in the air.
Now this is from last night. In the last two days, the babies have started wing practise. In order to be able to make the first flight, they need to be strong enough to not just drop. And this is where this larger nestbox hopefully proves its worth. With more space in the box, the babies have more space to practise. It won't be much longer now until fledging. These guys look awesome.
Nestbox news: 3 minute mayhem
Sorry, yet another Bluebird baby post. But they are very entertaining and exciting to watch right now. The babies are now 12 days old, their eyes are open, they are still napping a lot but are also more aware and awake. The feathers are really coming in now, giving them an odd apearance with fluff as well as hard sheaths. They are grooming a lot to open the sheaths. And every three minutes, an adult bird comes to feed them. I love these little grumpy faces so much.
Nestbox news: Grumpy old grandpas
The Bluebird babies are 10 days old now. They have become vocal, their eyes are open, feathers are starting to emerge. We have gone from "shrimp" stage to "grumpy old gramps" stage. Gayle and Mr. Business continue to be very attentive. Gayle is still spending the night in the box but now that the babies are getting bigger, it is not as comfy for her anymore. First video is from day 7, then day 10.
Nestbox news: What goes in must come out... and in!
The babies are five days old and have grown steadily thanks to the constant stream of food brought by mom and dad. And what goes in, must come out. When a baby is fed, it usually relives itself right after. In the beginning, the parents will eat the fecal sac, apparently it contains nutrients that the babies cannot digest yet.
Nestbox news: It was a big day yesterday,
the Bluebird babies have hatched! The first two did so yesterday, and the remaining three took a bit longer and hatched this morning. It was a bit nervous yesterday because I saw Gayle looking out the entrance hole a lot and also leaving a lot, and Mr. Business was nowhere to be seen. These birds are hardy but anything can pretty much happen to them any time. Thankfully, this morning, he finally seems to have realized that he has babies now, and him and Gayle have been feeding them diligently all day. The next couple of days will be on the cooler side, and this is when the babies are most vulnerable.
You can hear Mr. Business sing a little melody when he arrives with food. that is later going to be the parents’ call to lure the babies out of the box for fledging. I really like how much space they have in there, how they don’t have to hover over the babies but can watch them from the edge of the nest. Nobody is crammed unless they want to.
