Last year's birds
Fluff roosts
Fluff is usurped
A truly excellent informative site about these birds
David
Jones's
site with nesting Parus caeruleus, about 8 miles away
Visitors since 5th May 2000:
29th May 2000. The weather has temporarily eased up, although it is still cool at night. The nest box themometer said 17 Celsius at midnight, when the outside temperature thermometer said 9.3 Celsius. During the day we took a picture of the chicks in box 2, who are a week behind in their development.
Here is the mum of box 1 on the fence post just before sunset.
The mother bird spent 20 minutes singing on the wire in the evening, a few metres away from the nest box. She then dived off into the trees and spent the night away from the box and the brood, for the first time.
The birds make a curious cheep-chukka-chukka-chukka noise when they see humans, or Woody woodpecker, seen here attacking the peanut feeder.
Here is a peanut, attacked by the mother for food.
The largest nestling tucks his head half way under his wing feathers towards morning, in an attempt at the roosting position. The others sit with straight heads. None of them are very fluffed up. Here is the corresponding picture on the night of the 30th/31st.
30th May 2000. A fine day, only 0.2mm of rain in the gauge. The nestlings were making a fine racket of squawking and cheeping, so we recorded them by leaning out of the window above the box with a pair of Shure microphones. Here are five of the seven nestlings.
The nestlings pay attention when an adult brings food
When the bird approaches the box, the birds sit up and take notice.
She arrives with a snack to dispense
She then dives below the pile of bodies to do nest maintenance.
The birds spend much time preparing their feathers for flight, preening, scratching, and exercising their wings.
One of the young birds is "cock of the roost" and is definitely the top youngster. Here he is, having risen to his rightful (self-appointed) position at the pinnacle of the nest.
But he does have two hench-birds who offer support, and who take turns in rising to the top and attempting to intercept the incoming food flights. This is a shot of the "three wise birds facing North".
From time to time the fledglings-to-be indulge in
a mutually-supportive huddle.
The birds are due to leave Thursday morning, according to the textbooks. However, we shall get up tomorrow just in case....
31st May 2000. The day started bright and sunny, but a return to unsettled weather is forecast for the next few days. The nestlings in box 1 did not fly this morning, and at 08:15 am are still being fed intensively. The chicks in nest box 2 are coming along well, making little cheeping noises when mother is absent.
email d.jefferies@surrey.ac.uk David Jefferies 30th May 2000