Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Baby wrens


Mr. Lonelyhearts is lonely no more. The little house wren we've been watching in our backyard as he sang next to all our birdhouses and stuffed twigs into each one (a kind of birdie hope chest) has finally made it. Not only did he get a date, but he has married (for the moment), settled down and is raising a family. It's difficult to count the babies. Two little beaks can be seen on the left; in this picture they're closed. They have feathers, so they are a few days old, or perhaps a week.

We opened the roof of the house to take this picture. It's OK to do this if you're quick. The parents resumed bringing food in to the nest as soon as we were out of the way.

Both parents are helping to feed the little guys, coming and going in an endless relay. They also clean the nest, carrying away the poop sacs so that parasites don't endanger the health of the babies. (Been there, changed those diapers!) I won't be able to check on them again until Saturday, but I'm thinking about them often.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Simcha, I just love, love your blog!! I have been reading it from the start and it is simply wonderful! I love your pictures, and I know those ones of birds are very hard to get. But one of my most favorite is the one of the canoe with the 2 hats in it. It just looks very peaceful and simple..just you and your Partner4life....

ShinyCoral

Simcha said...

Thanks so much for your comments! I enjoy writing it, and it's so nice to know that someone enjoys reading it. I like the canoe picture too -- I like to look at it when I'm lonely. Anyway, thanks for writing!