Diary 2008 Page Five
| 10th May As predicted, the first chicks hatched this morning. By 6.15 I noticed two had hatched and Mum was eating some of the shell. Now, it is just after 12 noon and I can see four pink 'blobs'. I have refreshed the seed and mealworm feeders. So far, I have only seen her bring very small grubs. Here is a picture of the four that have hatched. If you click the picture, it will open a larger version. There is also a video of her feeding one of the first four if you click the video icon.
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| 11th May When I checked the box this morning, I thought there were either 3 or 4 eggs left to hatch. This evening, I am sure that I can see three eggs still to hatch. It's been a beautiful, warm, sunny day with plenty of natural food about. I still haven't positively identified a mealworm being brought in. However, I have seen both the male and female taking escapees from the holes and from the outside of the feeders so I think it's just a matter of time before they find that they can get in and feast! The fact that they seem unsure of the rich source of food that I am providing reinforces my opinion that this is a first-season breeding pair. I haven't seen the male inside the box since the time that she first started brooding. However, I have seen him in the hawthorn calling to her. She is very quick to leave the box and see what titbit he has to offer and then she returns to feed it to the chicks. On one occasion today, she came in with what appeared to be a black spider. It was rather large and she had to 'compress' it several times before a grateful mouth swallowed it. The image on the right shows her arrive with quite a large grub. It takes several attempts before she finds a gape large enough to swallow it. The first chick to receive it just stays with his mouth wide open as if to say, "Mum!! I can't swallow that! It's much too big!" Click on the picture for a larger version and on the video icon to view the video. |
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| 13th May I can still see one egg that has not hatched. However, I can't guarantee that there are 8 chicks so there may still be at least one more that has not hatched, yet. I still haven't seen either bird enter the feeders but they have been spotted sticking their heads in to extract them. The picture on the right shows a very large spider that was brought in this morning. Mum tried several times to get one of the gapes to swallow it but she had to remove it and scrunch it each time until she found a taker. Comparing the size of the abdomen of this spider, it looks as big as some of the heads of the younger chicks! No wonder it got stuck in their mouths! There is a larger version of the image if you click on it and a video linked to the video icon below. I have also cropped another picture which shows the size of the spider compared to the gapes of the chicks. |
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| 14th May This morning, I filled the feeders really early as there seemed to be very little feeding going on. When I returned to the computer, I started to capture the video. I was very relieved to find that she had grabbed the chance of some free grub and was running a shuttle service to feed the chicks. The picture shows her with six gapes visible and a mealworm in her mouth. (Larger version if you click it) There is an unedited video of her during a period of about 68 seconds during which time she fed four chicks with worms. I don't believe that she has time to prepare them as I have seen in the past (Link to the video from last year HERE) One round trip took only 8 seconds. The reason that they 'butcher' the worms is that they can bite. It's not enough for us to feel but it would be felt by the tongue of a chick. Also, the gut of the worm contains the remains of the bran on which they feed. Think of All-Bran!!! |
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| 16th May I made a discovery today whilst using my Studio 10 video editor. I found that I can pan and zoom in a clip. I have edited a short video that shows Mum feeding a couple of mealworms. I cropped a bit from the middle whilst she went out. The second chick gets a mealworm shoved in its mouth and then doesn't seem to know what to do next! Mum gives it a couple of prods to get it down and then it disappears. I haven't been able to see more than eight beaks at once so there may be another egg that hasn't hatched. As the chicks get bigger, it will become clearer. If you click on the image on the right, it will open the video. Another thing that I discovered today is that Microsoft are providing five gigabytes of storage space to anyone who would like it. I have signed up and will start to transfer video clips to it just as soon as I discover how to use the space. I am hoping to be able to upload the complete video diary that I made a few years ago. It lasts about 16 minutes and shows all the action from nest-building to the chicks fledging. |
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| 20th May The chicks continue to flourish but I still can't count more than 8 gapes and one egg. I am hoping that there is another egg buried there, somewhere. If not, there must be a fatality which has probably been removed. It could be that that last chick that hatched much later that the first 8. The female continues to feed the mealworms but without preparing them. The pictures shows an egg plus gapes and all eight gapes. Click for larger versions. |
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| 20th May At 6.30 this morning, I went to fill the seed and mealworm feeders. I had no sooner dealt with the mealworms and was pouring sunflower hearts into another feeder when the BT came down, looked at me and still went into the feeder to collect worms. She was less than four feet from me. I stood still and waited to see if she'd return with me still there. She did. While she was inside the box, I beat a hasty retreat to get the video started to capture the feeding of breakfast. With so much grub, it wasn't surprising that she'd come in with 2 or three at a time. I managed to grab this shot of her with two in her beak; one each side like a very long moustache! By tilting her head, she was able to feed one chick and then another before setting off for 'seconds'. Whilst I watched the feeding this morning, I saw that she was clearly disturbed by something outside so she took the opportunity for a little tidying up inside. I went to see what was troubling her. There was a rook, a jackdaw and a magpie all feeding on the seed that I had scattered for the ground-feeders. The video shows her with two worms and her alarm at what was outside. It is now 5.30 and I have just filled the feeders for the third time today!
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 Click the picture for a larger version Click the icon for a short video |
| 25th May Mum is still working overtime to keep the eight chicks fed. We see Dad in the garden but he has never taken any part in the feeding. Obviously not a 'New Man'!! Mum is bringing several mealworms at a time and sometimes one chick takes the lot and at others, she manages to deal them out. On one occasion this evening, she came in with two worms and gave one to a chick but before she could get rid of the second one, the first chick had up-ended and produced a faecal sac. Poor old Mum had no alternative but to abort the feed and take the sac and the mealworm out again. There has been a great deal of wing flapping for some time, now. I may need to re-think my idea that the may fledge on Wednesday. I think it could be earlier. Click the picture for a larger version and the video icon for the video. |
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| 30th May I apologise for the delays in adding more news. It's been a very busy week as we have our granddaughter and a friend staying for the week and we are up and out everyday. Yesterday, I took them to Oakwood and today we are going to Heatherton. When we left yesterday morning, there were still all eight chicks in the box. When we returned, there were only five left. Another flew out at 7.15 this morning and the fifth left at 8.00am. There are now just three left and they don't appear to be in a hurry. |
| 2nd June I watched the last three chicks on Saturday morning and was caught out when the first one left at around 8.15. This left just two. I dashed to the lounge and set up a video camera to catch the faces at the entrance and the departure of the last two but I was too late!! The penultimate chick flew as I was rewinding the tape and the last one appeared at the window as I started to record. He didn't hang about and so the only piece of tape that I got of any of the chicks leaving is the one attached to the video icon on the right. (Larger version if you click the image.) I have repeated the clip in slo-mo as it's so short!! Since Saturday, we have seen some of the chicks in the hawthorn tree. In fact, as we sat outside for a cup of tea about an hour ago, we watched Mum taking advantage of the newly-filled mealworm feeders to run a shuttle service to the waiting chicks. It took her very little time to empty both feeders and she has added a new definition to the expression "Fast Food"
So now, with no chicks and
our visiting granddaughter gone, we feel quite bereft! Reading
around the on-line bluetit diaries, it seems to have been a very good
year for them. I know that my little brood would have struggled
without their supplement of mealworms. With just one parent
feeding them, she needed all the help we could give. |
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