Eight birds have fledged over the past week, 5 eggs are being incubated, and one “new” bird has been discovered. The house wrens at the Cow Pasture nest are incubating their 5 eggs. They should hatch this week. The 4 chickadee nestlings that were in the nest box at the Explore the Wild nest have fledged. Likewise, the 4 bluebird nestlings in the Into the Mist nest have flown the coop. I must say, bluebirds leave a messy nest behindRead more
Posts tagged: #Carolina Chickadee
Battle of the Bough
It was a struggle for home territory. A willow tree located on the northwest side of the wetlands was the site of the dispute. On one side, a resident pair of Carolina chickadees, the other, a pair of otherwise transient tree swallows. I occasionally see tree swallows passing through our area during migration. They dip into the wetlands, perhaps spend a few minutes to an hour hawking insects over the water, then they’re gone. They do, though, nest at someRead more
Nest Box Update 5.22.18
We now have four active nests, one house wren, two bluebird and one chickadee nest. The house wren nest has 5 eggs. The 2 bluebird nests have 4 nestlings each, and the chickadee nest has 4 nestlings. The Cow Pasture nest which has already added 4 new chickadees to the local avifauna now has 5 eggs laid by a house wren. There are 4 chickadee nestlings in the Explore the Wild nest box that are ready to fledge. I fearedRead more
Nest Box Update 5.8.18
There’s been both hatchings and fledgings this week. Nine birds have hatched and 8 birds have fledged. The number of hatchlings has no doubt increased as I write. Earlier this morning there were 5 unhatched eggs in the nests with newly hatched nestlings. I’m sure more have hatched in the four hours since I checked the boxes. I heard the ominous sound of a house wren as I approached the nest box at the Cow Pasture. House wrens are notoriousRead more
Nest Box Update 5.1.18
As they were last week, three of our six nest boxes are occupied by Carolina chickadees and three by eastern bluebirds. The three chickadee nests have a total of 6 eggs in one nest, and what appears to be 8 nestlings with 4 each in the other two nests. The three bluebird nests contain 8 eggs split evenly among two nests and what looks like 4 nestlings in other. The Cow Pasture nest has 4 chickadee nestlings. Two weeks agoRead more
Nest Box Update 4.24.18
This week’s inspection came out all positive. There are hatchlings, new eggs, and two nests have seen a rejuvenation. There were hungry mouths to greet me as I peered into the nest box at the Cow Pasture. Although the nest previously had 6 eggs, I could only make out 5 nestlings. There may have been one chickadee nestling under the mass of blind, naked parids that lay before me but I couldn’t see it. They’ll still be in the nestRead more
Nest Box Update 4.10.18
Everything looks great out on the bluebird trail. All of our 6 nest boxes have nests and all but one has eggs. Only one nest had a bird incubating, so egg laying may yet continue. There are 3 bluebird nests and 3 chickadee nests. The Cow Pasture nest has a full compliment of 6 eggs. An adult was incubating as I opened the inspection door on the side of the nest box. Soon after I took the photo you seeRead more
Spring Happenings
Last week started cool, temperature-wise, but ended with a warmth that brought out all manner of creatures and plants that had been lying in wait for just that moment to arrive. There are a lot of photos to show and things to discuss, so let’s start with the snake above. It was pointed out to me that someone here at the museum had seen a water snake back at the end of February or in early March. We had someRead more
Nest Box Update 3.28.18
We’re on the move. All of our nest boxes have seen some sort of activity the past week. Three bluebird nests are underway, two chickadee nests, and one nest box has had been modified slightly by some unknown entity. The nest box at the Cow Pasture which contained some 3” of moss last week has now been topped off with fur and feathers. A well-defined cup has yet to be made to finish off the nest, but that may veryRead more