And other stories from the garden
May 14th, 2012 by Chris
All the chicks have fledged. Some of them (it’s kind of difficult to count) left the nest yesterday. The rest went first thing this morning, with one chap hanging around on his own for quite a while. It’s the first time the chicks in the nest box haven’t all left on the same day. But then, it’s the first time we’ve had great tits, so perhaps it’s not unusual for them. 13 May is also the earliest we’ve seen chicks fly the nest, by quite a margin.
It’s really difficult to count, but it looks as if there might be nine chicks in the nest. They certainly keep the parents busy with feeding and tidying up after them. Here’s some video from today.
May 1st, 2012 by Chris
Mother and father great tit are working hard feeding the chicks and they’re growing well. They’re getting feathers and are now much more animated than they were. Here’s a short clip.
Apr 25th, 2012 by Chris
The great tit chicks had hatched this morning, a miserable, cold, wet day. They looked really floppy first thing and we were worried they might not make it because the parents couldn’t get out and find food. Sophie rushed out to buy meal worms, but we think the starlings had them all. Still, by this evening they are looking a lot more lively. And so much mouth!
Apr 12th, 2012 by Chris
I guess there’s a chance this isn’t what you were expecting when you clicked that link, but this is a blog post about the bird Parus major, the great tit. This year we have a pair of great tits nesting in our big brother nest box. I suppose I ought to change the name of the blog really.
They started nest building three or four weeks ago whilst we were away in Gambia. We haven’t been very good at recording things this year, so I’m not sure when laying started, but they’re now up to eight eggs. Mrs Great Tit seems to be sitting now, although she does spend a good deal of time out of the nest. The male is bringing her food in regularly. Here’s a few snippets from this evening.
They’re a lot tidier than the sparrows we had last year. Lovely as sparrows are, they don’t make good viewing as they just filled the nest box with grass and completely obscured the camera. The great tits are far more co-operative. It’s not the first time there have been great tits in the box—a great tit roosted in there in 2009—but it’s the first time they have nested.