{"id":8487,"date":"2021-07-01T17:55:21","date_gmt":"2021-07-01T16:55:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/davidwithington.com\/?p=8487"},"modified":"2021-07-01T22:05:44","modified_gmt":"2021-07-01T21:05:44","slug":"abandoned-bird-nest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/davidwithington.com\/abandoned-bird-nest\/","title":{"rendered":"The Abandoned Bird’s Nest"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Abandoned<\/a><\/p>\n

What a pleasure!<\/span><\/p>\n

Watching a little bird busily building her nest in our little nesting box.<\/span><\/p>\n

To be honest, we were surprised.<\/span><\/p>\n

The box was many years old and the wood had begun to rot.<\/span><\/p>\n

The bluetits had long since decided it was too draughty for their home.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But this tiny bird had decided she was happy there.<\/span><\/p>\n

I sent a rather blurred photo to my bird-watcher friend to see if he could identify it.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Unknown<\/a>
What’s the unknown nesting bird?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

His reply was, “Could be a golden eagle!”\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

LOL! Thanks, Trev.<\/span><\/p>\n

Serves me right for taking the photo from a distance through the kitchen window’s venetian blinds!<\/span><\/p>\n

Bird Watching<\/span><\/h2>\n

Watching the bird was fascinating.<\/span><\/p>\n

In. Out. In. Out.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was exhausted by just watching her.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bird Gone Missing<\/span><\/h2>\n

Unfortunately, a week later, there was no sign of the bird.<\/span><\/p>\n

We thought she might be sitting happily within her nest, singing happily to her soon-to-be-born chicks.<\/span><\/p>\n

But, alas, that wasn’t the case.<\/span><\/p>\n

She’d laid her eggs. But had abandoned the nest.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why?<\/span><\/p>\n

I don’t know.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps frightened away.<\/span><\/p>\n

Or maybe caught by the cat which regularly uses our garden for its morning rituals.<\/span><\/p>\n

New Box: Interesting Discovery<\/span><\/h2>\n

Weeks passed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cobwebs formed over the entrance to the box.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, yesterday, I removed the nesting box, and replaced it with a new non-draughty one.<\/span><\/p>\n

I could see the old box was packed with moss.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And sitting on the top was a beautifully formed nest containing three eggs.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Bird<\/a><\/p>\n

The eggs were stone cold. <\/span><\/p>\n

Lifeless.<\/span><\/p>\n

But then I noticed something unusual.<\/span><\/p>\n

The eggs had a slightly different coloured shade on top.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Bird<\/a>
The bird’s eggs had a different shade on the top<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Guess The Bird<\/span><\/h2>\n

So I asked my bird-watching friends again.<\/span><\/p>\n

One friend thinks they may be goldfinch eggs. Another thinks robin or long-tailed tit.<\/span><\/p>\n

I reckon they’re a bit too small to be a golden eagle. Sorry, Trev!<\/span><\/p>\n

What do you<\/em> reckon? <\/span><\/p>\n

Do you recognise the eggs (or the bird in my blurred photo)?<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Bird<\/a>
Too small to be a golden eagle!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It’s a shame to bin the nest and the eggs. <\/span>Would a natural history museum appreciate them perhaps?<\/span><\/p>\n

Or should I pop them back into the new box in case their mother got a bit distracted for several weeks and comes back to check on her nest?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Nature is Beautiful<\/span><\/h2>\n

Isn’t it amazing how a bird will work so hard to create a safe, warm and cosy environment for her young.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Even our old rotting box hadn’t put her off. Lots of moss filled in the draughty gaps.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And she’d formed a lovely round shape in which to lay her eggs.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The nest was beautifully formed<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Wonderfully and beautifully made.<\/span><\/p>\n

The wonder of creation is incredible, isn’t it.<\/span><\/p>\n

So sad to see the nest abandoned.<\/span><\/p>\n

But it still filled me with a sense of awe and wonder.<\/span><\/p>\n

The majesty of it all.<\/span><\/p>\n

Roll on next spring.<\/span><\/p>\n

A new nesting box awaits. <\/span><\/p>\n

I can’t wait to see who claims it.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What a pleasure! Watching a little bird busily building her nest in our little nesting box. To be honest, we were surprised. The box was many years old and the wood had begun to rot. The bluetits had long since decided it was too draughty for their home.\u00a0 But this tiny bird had decided she […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8496,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,289],"tags":[477,479,478],"yoast_head":"\nThe Abandoned Bird's Nest - David Withington<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Weeks ago, we'd been watching the little bird busily building her nest. Had she abandoned it? 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