empty nest

We have a great yard…..1 full acre of grass and fir trees with a big old maple in the middle.  It attracts a lot of wild life.  In the evenings and early morning there are usually deer in the front yard.  Rabbits galore and birds of every feather come to visit.  We even have ducks waddling through to the wetland behind us.  Raccoons wander through with their families, headed to raid someone’s house.

For the second year in a row we have had a pair of black cap chickadees nest in a hanging basket of flowers on our front porch.  last year we didn’t know what was going on until we saw the parents going in and out of the basket and heard the little ones cheeping.  There were three of the little chicks and we carefully watered the plant around the nest.  We watched them fledge and move off into the bordering wood and then saw them no more.

This year the family was back.  Two adults built a nest out of grass in the basket.  When I saw them coming and going I curiously took a look into the basket when they were gone.  There in the middle of our flowers was a nest built of grasses but also some of the Fokkerdogs’ hair.  If you have read my post, you know that the Fokkerdog passed away.  He had shed most of his winter coat in the back yard and these enterprising birds had found that warm downy fur to line their nest with.  A couple days later, there were three little eggs in the nest.  Each morning as I prepare to go to work, I go out and water our garden and flowers.  I would talk to the chickadees, telling them all was okay and that I meant them no harm as I went about my task.  Whichever parent was sitting on the nest would watch me but not fly away.  I like to think they became used to my voice and presence.  They would fly in and make their “chick-chick” noise of alarm but they would always go to the nest and watch me not truly seeming afraid of my near presence.

One day I noticed that there seemed to be a bigger mass in the middle of the nest, both parents were away, so I took a peek.  There were three little chicks just out of the shell curled up in the nest.  Each day I now talked to the birds and kept an eye out for them.  Keeping my little birds safe, I ran off the neighborhood hunting cat and being under our porch eaves, the predator birds did not see them.

These chicks grew amazingly fast and soon both parents were running a full time food train of fresh caught insects to the hungry little ones.  then came the morning I walked out on the porch and there were two little heads peeking at me over the rim of the basket.  they were joined by the third little bird and I talked to them some more.  These chicks went from barely moving to exploring their tiny little world in 2 days.  Then on Saturday I saw one little guy perched on an upper limb of the flowers.  The parents were out in the yard calling with a high pitched call.  A couple hours later I saw the little guys out under our Rhododendron about 30 feet from the house.

They were perched in the branches and cheeping away merrily.  The parents were near and calling in their high pitched tweet to the young to join them in the hunt for the plentiful bugs.  Eventually the birds moved into the wood next to our yard.  I could hear them cheeping away.  This morning (Monday) I saw all three chicks and parents out in the yard busily hunting.

I have taken on the role as nest guardian for this little family and am happy to do it.  They have fledged and flown and have begun their lives out in the big bad world.  Another year will pass and hopefully they will grow and survive.  I miss them in my routine and hope they return next year.