I had a bit of a surprise when I was watering my brassica seedlings this evening, at first I thought strangly some bits had blown into the polytunnel, then I looked a bit closer and found this in the middle of a tray of plants. Pretty sure it is a black birds handiwork, as I've noticed one back and fore today, but of all places she must have thought the shelving resembled a hedge!
Aww... ;D
So...what is it going to be..sowing new lot of brassicas or black bird having to build new home?.. ;D
I think as the nest is only a day old, I'll rescue the plants I can, some will have to stay as the nest is resting on them and then add some 'hedge-like' material around the shelf, so hopefully both of us will be happy!
I can grow around and up through the shelving so not too much of a problem. Perhaps she will have had second thoughts and moved somewhere else ;D
I noticed two eggs this morning, so she must be ok with my improvised hedge!
Hope it doesn't get too hot in there.
Hope it works out for both of you. That wont be her first nest of the year so perhaps the loss of another one has made her take a risk.
My pair in the back garden are feeding their second. They had fledgings from the first nest and the rain then reduced cat predation but one day they had all gone :(
It is a tough life being a Blackbird.
What's happening ? Is she sitting comfortably ?
My lot left the nest yesterday and the parents are still running around with food in their beaks so at least one has survived a night.
Four eggs and so far she is sitting tight :-\ Fingers double crossed. She seems ok with me pootling through and doing a bit of watering most days.
Is your baby still being fed? I've no idea how long they go on for?
I took this last week
Blackbird eggs incubate for 12 to 15 days. Young fledge after 12 to 15 days.
They lay 3 to 5 eggs, and can have up to five broods in a single season!
Glad to hear she is sitting on the eggs. Over here, Dad is solo feeding two survivors from the 2nd nest and Mum is sitting on her 3rd nest in the Wisteria next to the kitchen window. The babies can fly now but once the eggs hatch he will move on to feeding the nest and the older kids will have to fend for themselves.
I can hear the youngsters chirping now, it is a wonderful sound.
Is the incubation period from the first egg or the last?
Sounds brilliant and what a pleasure for you to be able to keep an eye on them, lucky you :)
Quote from: Jayb on June 06, 2012, 10:18:29
Is the incubation period from the first egg or the last?
I think it is from the bird start actually sitting on them..as she won't start sitting on them until she has completed the 'set'. Once the 'bum' is on it stays on.. ;D
Thanks, I shall get counting for expected hatch date :)
Quote from: Jayb on June 06, 2012, 10:44:02
Thanks, I shall get counting for expected hatch date :)
This is getting 'eggsiting' (sorry ::) ). Hope all works out for the birds and you will see/hear the chicks soon.
We have lots of birds nesting in the hedge and in the apple tree. When the youngsters are on their early outings, the parents make a huge racket to distract predators. Always amazes me how big the youngsters are, just their wings are shorter and they have different colours.
We have lots of blackbirds. They can occasionally get very tame and not worried at all by gardener's activities. I had one that almost mobbed me as soon as I went in the garden, because me digging was a good source for worms. Had to watch that the deposited soil didn't actually hit this bird, it came within inches of my fork. This lasted for two seasons, then it must have died, never had one that tame again.
Never had one nesting in the greenhouse either! This is quite something!
Mine always seem to leave the nest on day 12. You can spot when they hatch because the male starts visiting the nest with food. And when they fledge she isnt sitting any more. They cant fly when they first leave the nest so stand by for babies crashing round the poly. I hope it works out, you are in for a very "interesting" time.
However tame the parents get, they are nervous and protective parents. But they dont easily desert a nest.
I have a nest in the forsythia bush. Just ready to attack the red currants when they ripen up. I think there is another behind the downpipe from the roof. They are only a few yards from my redcurrants. Not sure I am a blackbird fan.
Good to read life is going on amoungst the plants,Ima cat luvver but they are so*s when it comes to young birds that have fledged or parents on the ground searching for worms.
Rang mum this sarvo and she was well miffed that a cat had the front to hide under the pagola clocking the resident BB,s that are nesting closeby,she said it even ran across the garden with a branch in its mouth with a BB still hanging on to the other end,but thank goodness she banged a fork on the dustbin as the cat legged it and the BB flew off unharmed..... :o....phew !!!!!!!!!!!
Her favourite"White Wing" BB has not been seen for a few days and shes convinced he of the whiskery variety has made a snack of it.....hope not as its great to see a bird return for 3 seasons and be so easily identified.
Please keep us posted on your BB,s
Gazza
Mum was off her nest when I went to water the polytunnel yesterday evening (got soaked as it was pouring with rain and the water butts are outside) I quickly took this picture of the four eggs. All intact, I think today is day 12 ;D
Not long now then !!!
My girl is sitting tight though there was a Magpie on the roof above the nest yesterday.
She is quite an old bird now with a yellow beak almost like a male, so she should have known better than to build a nest there.
Still, I will do what I can.
Magpies don't give up easily, hopefully it doesn't know about your girl :)
We have had a jay coming to feed under the crab apple tree this week, picking up the bits from the feeders above. The black birds get quite distraught and try and bomb it and chase it from the garden.
Forgot to say still 4 eggs at 6.15 this morning.
I've also had a very friendly male blackbird in the garden for a while. I think he has been training me to feed him on demand! It was a bit startling at first having a bird fly straight at me from what ever tree he was sitting in, but he just lands at my feet or the stable door and waits to be fed. He used to really shout/screech at me but he is much more polite now. He lands on the car sometimes too but finds it all a bit too skiddy particularly when its wet.
I guess it should have been no suprise to have found out he is the daddy of the polytunnel eggs ::) ;D
With all the messing around we have had this year, we never got around to sorting the garden raspberries so they were like a thicket. Went to sort them last week and we have a blackbird nesting in there, they shouldn't go short of food, then ;D
Yes, you often hear people say that they have a tame blackbird in their garden - actually it is us who have been tamed to provide a year round food supply, defend their nests etc..
I guess my counting may be slightly out as I don't know when she started sitting, but still no sign of hatching. Hope they are alright.
Lol, the black birds here are a menace when it comes to fruit not protected, uncovered favourites seem to be cherries and autumn raspberries and most years I have to net the greenhouse and polytunnel as they savage ripe tomatoes too :o Then they compete with the wasps for apple destruction ::) Love wildlife! But I'm hoping to keep the blackb's so well fed this year they leave my tomatoes alone......
My girl is still sitting too and the male has stopped feeding the young. Saw a juvenile on the lawn yesterday so they have at least one survivor.
But other local BBs are feeding their nests like crazy and I seem to be contributing 500g of sultanas every day to their efforts. Hope this is satisfying their fruit eating appetites !!
As you might have already spotted, I am a big fan of blackbirds.
Ours are on feeding duty now. There are a couple of magpies on the prowl so the dog has been chasing them, she hates them ;D
Quote from: Jayb on June 12, 2012, 14:36:28
I guess my counting may be slightly out as I don't know when she started sitting, but still no sign of hatching. Hope they are alright.
Lol, the black birds here are a menace when it comes to fruit not protected, uncovered favourites seem to be cherries and autumn raspberries and most years I have to net the greenhouse and polytunnel as they savage ripe tomatoes too :o Then they compete with the wasps for apple destruction ::) Love wildlife! But I'm hoping to keep the blackb's so well fed this year they leave my tomatoes alone......
Yes they peck tomatoes here too, especially yellow cherry varieties. They also confuse butternut squash with pears (which they peck mercilessly). Luckily bird pecks on butternut seem to heal over fairly well. No soft fruit is safe from blackbirds here either. :(
Keep us updated about the eggs/youngsters hopefully ....
JB any news?
My girl is still sitting though the first nest she built this year has blown down intact - it was lined with coir from my hanging baskets, grrr. At least yours is sheltered but it must be terrifying for her, sitting there.
Sadly my girl has quit her nest :( I'm not sure why, I haven't seen any cats about and I'd been keeping my distance to give her peace and quite. I did notice some magpies hanging around but they were up in the trees and not that close? I also wondered if the sparrow hawk had taken her but happily I notice her this morning (well I think it was her) when she came in for food. The male blackbird was quite close in a tree and they flew off together. I know it was always a risk being so close to people but I wonder if this is what she does builds a nest, gets them nearly hatched then.....hopefully next time she will be more successful.
:( Perhaps the eggs weren't going to hatch so she gave up.
Checked on my girl: looking up through the wisteria I could see her beak on the nest then turned round to see the male bird looking at me "please don't hurt it". It's a tough life being a BB.
Their one survivor so far this year, soaking up some rays yesterday:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v169/neptune1308/lonelybaby.jpg)
After I started feeding the robins, I got Mr & Mrs Blackbird arriving on the window sill. Mr has gone off at the moment but Mrs B is around and almost demanding food. I got some fat from the butchers which I wrapped in parcels of cling and froze, so I can get a bit out as I want. Been putting out fruit too.
Today I went out with a saucer of stuff and she was hovering around me waiting for it.
I watched as I was working in the garden, she kept going to the bushes/tree behind my shed and when she got there I could hear the babies squeaking.
Last Friday, I had the back door open and she flew in the outhouse, landed in my parsley on the sill, had to rescue her! Think she was telling me I hadn't fed her yet!!
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y257/jesssands1/2012-06-19095603.jpg)
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y257/jesssands1/2012-06-15132852.jpg)
What a beautiful view you have from your window. Just love it.
thanks.. yes its a great view x
was lying in my bed at 7:30 as off this week and had to get up and feed mrs B. Shes outside, sitting on the fence shouting!!
all is now quiet, while shes busy transporting food!!
:D
Fab pictures :)
It's really making me smile reading about all these BB's, what clever birds they are :)
Well.. I found that Mrs B's babies are actually quite big already. She has made a good job at hiding them but today whilst hanging out washing I caught her feeding one in the hydrangea bush, then I saw another in the tree. They are at least two thirds the size of mum. I saw one in the tree yesterday but decided I didn't know what it was...lol (it kinda looked like a BB but no tail and it was chubby and moved about as much as a koala bear!)
Today she has taken a little saucer of chopped fat, some dried meal worms, a whole apple in 2 hits, a strawberry and the crumbs from my cream cracker box. She don't like cuecumber btw!!
Here's pics of babies x x
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y257/jesssands1/2012-06-20115227_sml.jpg)
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y257/jesssands1/2012-06-20115627_sml.jpg)
^^ they are beautiful but the wonder is that any survive at all.
Something hatched in "my" nest earlier this week but perhaps only one egg as not much food going to the nest. And they were buzzed by a bird of prey yesterday evening - the noise they make. The female left the nest and screeched from an nearby tree and the male bird was trying to take the predator on though it seemed only interested in the nest. Well how could I eat with that racket going on? The Bird was chased off (a male sparrowhawk I think) and the parents eventually calmed down.
So not looking too good for this one :(