I tried very hard not to disturb the nest last year. I'd only take the basket down when necessary for watering, and I took great care to water around the nest and leave it undisturbed. The mama bird came and went throughout that period, so I don't think she abandoned the eggs/babies because of human interference, especially since the babies "flew away" while we were out of town.
Well, Mother's Day weekend I bought my petunia baskets and hung them up once again. This past Sunday, I took the baskets down to water them and found a nest in the same basket! There were no eggs in it at that point, but when I took the baskets down this afternoon for watering, look at what I found:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkasK4v_iVdbXoagzWUQ8Ud5ISciV3SFx1BSnalC9shAnjh8D_bPFYapTA-2bPMoxzoGwsqYJ2AIZq15FkN5GOZHIjD30fBEU8KhGjZgDojA_GrdIR5h1utwnLR5JN1-s5KUzqx_85Yk8/s320/100_9505.jpg)
I also tried to snap a picture of the mama and daddy bird, who perched on the next-door neighbors' roof and were cheeping ferociously at me until I re-hung the basket and went back inside.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjPIwuC1JA73utLoi4agqje9AeJgpIyqgVpuZqNY1AaTkPLnDf9DKGyyvD85aGgGcFOeDvlIbpqW4g345KDsafC93pQu1ogmvQZB4cqlw0RjaPUmopPOfhaeHUVIliys7SFLLEXACpJI/s320/100_9507.jpg)
Does anyone out there know what the heck kind of birds these are? I tried to figure it out online last year, but didn't come up with anything definitive. They frequent our backyard bird feeders, and I'm almost 100% positive they're the same birds from last year. The eggs are also the same - two smaller, less speckly ones and one much larger, super-speckled egg. Last year, we were guessing that some type of usurper bird was trying to horn in on the nest with her egg (in a cuckoo bird sort of way) and that was the cause of all the ruckus we'd hear out on the porch, the birds fighting over the nest. But a second year in a row? Hmmm, now we're not so sure. Hubby suggested that perhaps the majority of mama bird's egg-creating energy went into the big egg, and the others were sort of "runts of the litter" - or would that be a clutch? Anyhow, we'll now be monitoring this year's nest situation, once again as unobtrusively as possible (I will not sacrifice my flowers for the nest, so I will continue to water around it) and hopefully this year's eggies turn into birdies that actually do fly away this summer!
3 comments:
I have no idea but it could be the same birds that tried to make a nest in our upstairs bathroom window last summer.
The upstairs screen has a hole in it. For a few days, we couldn't figure out why the cats were so interested in the bathroom window and then we raised the blinds and saw the beginnings of a nest.
not sure what kind of bird they are but I can look in my big book of birds and try and figure it out.
we have robins in our hanging baskets. Every year..like you
It is a fun and educational thing to watch...your right thought 4 is young for the circle of life
I suspect they are house finches.
Hi! Not sure you remember me...
I still enjoy reading the escapades of the lil' one.
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