Bird Stuff

Here's the latest updates on the bird situations... Something tells me this is gonna go on alllll year - hope you like birds! ;-)

This picture was taken about two weeks ago... This is the first of the two fake trees on the front porch (both with housefinch nests). This is the nest that had 5 small blue speckled eggs, 3 of which hatched. Brett says the baby birds look like old men.


Then early last week there was a day where we had REALLY strong winds, and in addition to blowing stuff around, sending the patio umbrella up and over the house from the back yard to the front yard (and breaking a spindle), etc, it also blew over the first of the two fake trees. I panicked when I saw the tree was over, but was happy to see one of the baby birds was sitting on the toppled over tree. He took off when I put the tree back up, and wasn't too hard to catch to put back in the nest, where I found another bird hunkered in for dear life. The third bird was missing, and I couldn't find it anywhere... I figured two out of three would have to do.

A few hours later, Doogie and I were out in the yard when something in the shrubs caught his attention. He started to lunge towards the baby bird just as I saw it, but before I could do anything, the bird made such a fuss that Doogie took off in the opposite direction! I ran inside with the dog, grabbed a milk crate, and caught this little guy to put him back in the nest.


Then late this past week they must've decided it was time to leave the nest...


They'd already been getting more brave and peeking out. One had actually flown up onto the roof when I went to get the mail. Later he was back in the nest - but obviously had a taste for adventure, and was the first to leave.


Here's one thinking maybe it's time to move out...


Not sure if you can make them all out here. Two to the lower left, and one is higher up on the right. This was the last day I saw them - they all took off and haven't come back. I need to get the nest out of the tree, hose off that area, and get it down to the basement before someone else comes along and moves in!


And then there's the second nest that I polled everyone about awhile back. The one that had five housefinch eggs plus two brown-headed cowbird eggs (a bit bigger, and much more heavily speckled with brown spots). It seemed to take longer before any of the eggs started hatching, but now there's a number of baby birds in the nest plus two were kicked out and dried up on the front porch. Sounds like this is what happens when we leave the brown-headed cowbirds in the housefinch nest. Ah well - I guess this is nature taking it's course. Trust me, I'm not broken-hearted or anything like that, but I DO feel like I really should have gotten those cowbird eggs out of the nest, especially with seeing so many more cowbirds showing up at the feeder this year!

There are a lot of geese in the area now - it's nesting time! This picture's from the pond out back, but they're visible in many of the fields, near ponds, etc on the drive in to work. There's even one pair that already has a small squad of goslings following them around - I guess they had an early hatching compared to all the others?


And just as our own house finches and cowbirds are maturing and moving out, it looks like we'll have a new round of babies before long. This picture is in one of the two new arborvitaes I just put in a few weeks ago out back...to replace the ones that died over winter. This robin looks a bit spooked - I'm not sure why she felt the need to put her nest in such a high traffic area. Sometimes she takes off squawking when Doogie or I go by, and sometimes she just hunkers down and tries to stay out of site.


And here's what's going on in her nest... One day there were two eggs, and the next day there were three! Haven't checked it in a couple of days - not sure if she's working on cranking out more, or just keeping these three warm.


Oh, and since taking those pics, I've found ANOTHER robin's nest in the Norway spruce in the front yard! I think it had two eggs last I checked?

And here's more bird excitement! Last year I had a couple sightings of a flashy new, but very shy, bird in the backyard. All I had to do was move around inside and it would take off.

Well this year it seems the rose-breasted grosbeaks are getting a little more brave. I've seen up to two males at a time, plus there's a female that's occasionally hanging out with them. They seem to prefer the feeder back in the middle of the yard, rather than this one up close to the house... But ooooonce in awhile they'll get brave, and I just need to make sure I have the camera ready!


From the All About Birds link, it looks like they've probably just gotten up here from South America. Wow, after a trip like that, I better make sure I play the part of a good host and keep them well fed!