Wordless Wednesday…Empty Nesters
We are waiting for 4 beautiful bluebird eggs to hatch from Box 4. The “due date” was May 5, but they’re crack when they’re ready!
Exciting Update: Fingers are crossed for a second brood in Box 1 at Kickerillo. All hatched chicken mysteriously died in the first brood.
Empty Nesters: Last week, we were waiting for the 5 surviving bluebird chicks to fledge. It was getting crowded in the box, and the camera showed them peeking out of the small hole. Friday, it rained all day steadily, so I understand the hesitation.
Finally, on Saturday morning, they slowly…one by one took their first flight!
This is a tough time for the parents and the baby chicks, because although they come out flying…some are a bit wobbly. We’re always on the lookout for the neighborhood cat or hawk that may decide to have a small snack.
The parents are high up in a tree or our bat box, keeping an eye on the fledglings. They are also trying to help feed the crew and get them to the higher branches of the trees.
Their older siblings, just about 6 weeks since they fledged, came by to encourage their siblings to leave.
(the siblings from Brood 1)
We had a rare visitor this week…a red-headed woodpecker. They are not as common as the Downy or red-bellied woodpecker. The declining numbers of red-headed woodpeckers are due in part to the loss of nesting habitats (large wooded trees that can accommodate nest cavities).
Until next week...
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