Paul's Photo Blog: May 2009

Wednesday 27 May 2009

Male Blackbird 14 Days Early with the food!

I've moved the Robin nestbox camera to the shed where the Blackbird is now nesting. The 5th egg was laid today. What is quite amusing is that the male Blackbird keeps bringing food to the nest when guarding it for the female. He looks down at the eggs like he is expecting mouths to be there - sees there are none and eats the food himself!

Monday 25 May 2009

BlueTit Chicks Fledging

Was woken suddenly this morning with the loud calls of one of the chicks sitting on the top of our bedroom window which was ajar. Shot out of bed realising the chicks were fledging and managed to record the last two leave. Each didn't make it the 20'-30' from the house to the big tree when they tried to get across. They managed to make the distance but couldn't get a perch so fluttered down, The one in the video doing a wall climbing exercise was the one that eventually landed on the windscreen wiper. Picked each one up and placed them in the trees (together) as we have an abundance of cats in the area. Hoping they join up with the rest of the brood . . . the end of another nesting story :)

Sunday 24 May 2009

Bluetit chicks near leaving

Chicks soon to leave with parent attempting to coax them out - this video taken using a mirror so as to avoid hanging out the window disturbing the birds (hence the reverse image!)

Incoming

This is a one of the frames from video footage as the parent comes in with food trying to draw the chicks to leave the nest.

Siblings

BlueTit Chick Checking Outside World

BlueTit Chick

Day 20 and the chicks are starting to check the outside world!

Saturday 23 May 2009

Still shot of the parent feeding

Bluetit Chicks being fed - close to leaving (23/5/09)

This is a sparrow terrace nestbox on the front of the house where the Bluetits nested (they nested in the same box in previous years when it was on the rear of the house). This is day 19 from when I first noticed the parents taking in food. So they must be close to leaving. You can just notice one of the chicks trying to peer out of the hole

Friday 22 May 2009

Blackbird third attempt at nesting in the garden: Nest Complete (22/5)

Noticed on Wed evening (20/5) that the Blackbird who had deserted (twice!!!) the other nest in our garden was building on the side of our shed in the Clamatis. The location is about 6' from the Robin nestbox so last night I used a short plastic tub (the sort you get sauce/soup in) to make a waterproof housing for the Robin nestbox camera and removed the camera from the nestbox extended the cabling and mounted the camera fitted inside the housing on the perspex window above the nest. Well pleased with the results. The female finished the nest building this morning (short video will be posted) and was sitting at this point for a while. Looking forward to the first egg and hoping the clutch will have greater success than the previous two in the nest on the other side of the garden.

Blackbird Nest - Final Touches

Tuesday 12 May 2009

Great Tit Chicks Day 21 and they left - last four leaving

So pleased that I caught the final exit. Managed to record this remotely while on a trip in Israel using video conferencing technology - came back to the video unit to find the nest empty having left it recording. Had the whole hour during which they all left - this shows the last 10 minutes, with the birds leaving about 8 minutes into the video.