…finally!
Follow all of the Blue’s Family activities
The fledglings are not so little anymore. At approximately 2 1/2 weeks old, the babies will most likely depart the nest in the next few days. They are very loud whenever the parents are nearby. Now several of the fledglings will stick their head out of the nestbox entrance in an attempt to be the first to reach the food.
Open House
We opened the nestbox this weekend and there are actually five fledglings. They sort of blend together in the nest, but if you look closely, you can see five little birds:
That was not an egg
To update the previous post, the white “egg” we saw in the video was not an egg, but a fecal sac; the equivalent of a dirty diaper…for birds. The sacs are essentially poorly digested food. At least the baby birds are nice enough to deposit them near the nestbox entrance. Ah Nature! Ok I digress.
Feed Me!
The not-so-little fledglings now stick their heads out of the entrance for food. The adults (mostly Papa) are working harder than ever to feed them. However the larger they grow, the higher the demand for food. Good thing the fledglings are about on schedule to leave the nest within a few days. At almost 3 weeks old, they should be departing the nestbox soon.
Lily first spotted the fledglings sticking their heads (and mouths) out of the nestbox a couple of days ago. Since then, it has been very easy to see them in action. Every 5 minutes or so, a few of the five mouths open up at the edge of the nestbox entrance awaiting a meal. It’s reminiscent of The Little Shop of Horrors or the Demogorgon from Stranger Things. The competition for food is fierce.
More Pictures
I got some better photo opportunities today since the babies are sticking their heads out (click to zoom in).
What’s next?
Hopefully we can catch the fledglings testing their wings in the next few days. We haven’t seen any of them actually leave the nest yet. I’m not sure if they will all leave at the same time or gradually.
Great pictures and video. I’m excited to see them fly. I hope you will be able to catch it.