Maternity Ward

[Daisy]

During the very hot weather I left the doors to the summerhouse open all the time, including overnight.

Then a couple of days ago I noticed a blackbird hen going in there. She could easily get out, so I didn't worry about her. Then I noticed lots of twigs, leaves, stalks of grass etc all over the place. There in the top corner, on the fan heater was a very untidy nest - with two beady eyes saying "leave me alone"!

I was then worried that on Sunday when our whole family mob and two dogs would be around she would get frightened and abandon the nest. Obviously I couldn't close the door, so we put a long low table in the doorway, with a couple of plants on it to deter dogs jumping over it, and more on the ground so they didn't go under it either. And a notice to remind the humans to respect her privacy!

She's still on the nest, so we'll wait and hope to see little babies soon.

[Gemini]

Ooh, do keep us updated Daisy

[Lizzie48]

Daisy, my neighbour has blue tits nesting, next to the front door, on the gallery where we all have to pass, each year they come back!

[Oma]

Oh how lovely , keep taking pictures please 😁🐦⬛

[Daisy]

The weather is now more like March than June, but Mum-to-be is dry, warm and cosy in her nest. I watched her fly round the garden this morning in the rain before giving her feathers a good shaking and returning to the Maternity Ward. The corner she has chosen is protected from the current cold winds, and while it might not be the best-designed nest it is serving her well in this weather.

I couldn't get a photo of her this morning without startling her, but there will be more updates/pictures.

Lizzie, we have a tit nesting box, and it's lovely to watch the parents zooming in and out of a very tiny entrance. There was a brood in there earlier in the Spring, but I haven't seen any activity recently.

[Clover]

That’s lovely Daisy. Great to watch the whole process🐦⬛

[Nanto2girls]

Daisy, how lovely, please keep us up to date.

We get a lot of birds nesting in the big tree that we light up at Christmas.

[Daisy]

A short update from the Maternity Ward.

This morning I watched as a male blackbird flew low and purposefully onto our lawn. He pecked around for a bit and then went and stood on the wooden table we've still got in front of the summerhouse doorway. He wagged his tail feathers up and down a few times and then called, looking towards the nest. Ah, that must be Daddybird!

Something then startled him and he flew off, but I was pleased to see our expectant mum wasn't alone! I'll look out for him again, and try and get photos.

[Oma]

I hope he is helping by bringing nice juicy worms 😁

[Daisy]

Oma, I didn't see any evidence of a worm feast today. I hope he's going to up his game a bit.

[Daisy]

All is quiet in the Maternity Ward today. It's pouring with rain and there are very few birds of any sort around at the moment. But hopefully, no news is good news and Mum is keeping eggs nice and warm.

I've been reading up on blackbirds' nesting times etc. The Latin name for them is Turdus merula!

It is the female who builds the nests, and typically takes her about two weeks. That's slow compared with most garden birds, but the untidy outside of the nest hides a lining of mud with fine grass in the middle. They can produce two or three broods a year, and often use the same nest each time. They usually lay 3-5 pale blue eggs.

I didn't know that blackbirds mate for life and make a joint decision on where to build the nest. It seems a bit unfair that Dad then leaves all the construction work to Mum, but bird life, like human life isn't always fair.

Mum will sit on her eggs for up to 2 weeks, leaving Dad to stand guard and feed her. I hope this Dad realises what his duties are.

Baby blackbirds tend to leave the nest 13/14 days after they hatch, but they can fly at one week old and could leave the nest at about 9 days if they are under threat.

I won't be painting inside the summerhouse anytime soon!