I had a lot of bird drama yesterday afternoon. Over the last few days, I noticed the mother bird was sitting on her nest a little bit differently. I thought the egg might have hatched so, when she was "out" early this afternoon, I took a little peek.
Presenting...Baby Bird Egg No. 2!
With the movers here several days last week and the painters here several days this week, there has been a lot of foot traffic in and out through the front door. When people come and go, the mother bird either sits tight in the nest or flies to the branch of a nearby tree and keeps watch from there.
Yesterday afternoon about 2 hours after I took the above photograph, for some strange reason, I thought to go check on the nest. The mother bird wasn't around and I peeked and only saw one egg. The nest is not well attached to the branches of the palm tree and is, in fact, listing at an angle to the ground so I assumed the egg must have fallen out. I looked on the ground and in the pot to see where it landed but couldn't find anything. Then, upon closer inspection, I saw a tiny, tiny baby bird (less than 2" long!) that was literally newborn and had somehow fallen out of the nest. It was a light pinkish color with no feathers and blended in perfectly with the tiles on the entry step. I thought for sure it was dead so I went inside to get something to dispose of it with.
When I came back out, I noticed the baby bird was still breathing and even moving around so I carefully scooped it onto a paper towel (being careful not to touch it with my hands) and placed it back in the nest. In order to give the mother bird some undisturbed time with the baby, I posted signs on the house so no one goes near the front door. I checked early this morning and the mother is still sitting on the nest, the baby is still breathing and the other egg is still there. Fingers crossed that all continues to go well!
The house is now painted back to the original boring white. I plan to write a post on that very frustrating experience but, for now, I am just glad that I am able to check another item off of my "to do" list.
Look at the jungle outside those windows!
The middle school had set up a large poster board for departing students to write their names and where they were moving to...
Caitlynne participated in the 8th Grade "Moving Up" Ceremony on Thursday and yesterday was the last day of school for both of them. This year went by so fast! They have their report cards and final transcripts in hand and we can now register them in Fairfax County as soon as we return.
I do have some more information to post about services/shops near Nichada and hope to get it all put together and published tomorrow.
Have a great Saturday!
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