Saturday 14 May 2011

Encouraging signs ; Another update






Things went a bit quiet on the Blue Tit front for a while and I began to get worried, but earlier this week I noticed the pair making very frequent visits to the nest box and these visits were made with little caterpillars in their beaks!

The pair are gradually becoming slightly scruffy, to say the least, but are doing a great job in feeding their young. I have no idea of the numbers of chicks and so I will have to wait for at least a week and a half before there may be signs of fledging. Blue Tit young leave the nest when they are between 16 and 22 days old.

12 comments:

  1. I love blue tits! We have one visiting our garden. Like yours its rather scruffy, but extremely hard working. Its been flitting between our bird-feeder and its nest constantly for the past few days.

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  2. Yes! I know this feeling of anxious observation of nests. Our way, it seems the bluebirds really do have an active nest, but I'm not so sure about the tree swallows. The sparrows have been hanging around too close for comfort. Go, Bluetits!

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  3. Dear John,
    lovely! And I think we would look a bit "scruffy" too when we had to transport buckets full of worms and aphids every day to our dear little ones :-)

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  4. Great captures John. The poor things do get so scruffy as the year goes on but my goodness, they work hard!

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  5. Hi Mask,
    You may hear the flutter of tiny feathers soon then. Hopefully your Sparrowhawk will find other things to eat rather than Blue Tits!
    J

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  6. Hi Raining Acorns,
    It never ceases to amaze me how `worked` up I get over these wild creatures! They have no feelings towards me, but I do feel really protective! Daft eh?
    J

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  7. Hi Britta,
    I know, I can`t imagine how worn out they must feel, but their job to carry on the species outways anything else to them at the moment!
    J

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  8. Hi bazza,
    You have a thing about `hairstyles` on birds, I wonder why that is?! ;)
    J

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  9. Hi ShySongbird,
    Yes, it is no wonder that we don`t see the birds in June/July, when all they do is hide and moult!
    J

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  10. I hope you manage to see it all happen John.

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  11. Hi Keith,
    Yes, I hope so too, but it will probably all happen when I am at work!
    J

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