The Drama Continues...

Just when the excitement seemed to be winding down, there is more! The cardinals, Geoff and Louise, have nestlings. There are at least two little ones as of June 3rd. Louise still stayed on the nest the whole day, and Geoff did a good job bringing food to her and their nestlings. 

Geoff feeding the nestlings

And now, there is a new robin pair nesting even closer to the window! Calvin and Betty managed to build the nest without detection (because everyone in the lab was very focused on research), and had one perfect blue egg on June 3rd. She is likely still laying, and we should be able to follow their progress very closely in this nest because of it's location. 

Calvin, the new robin male

Betty, the new robin female

Betty on her nest

The first blue egg!

It's June!

No news is good news. The house finch fledglings have been spotted a couple times, but seem to be dispersing. The robins are definitely getting more independent (picture below is when they still relied on Jason and Frieda for everything...). 

Geoff and Louise are still doing well - he has been singing and collecting food nearby while she continues to incubate. This week is likely when eggs will be hatching!

Jason trying to hunt while being followed

Charlie singing in the morning sun

Robin fledgling hanging out

And angry to be photographed...

Busy Week! And a Tale of Three Species!

It's been an exciting week outside the Love Lab windows! The robin nestlings have fledged, and at least one is still hanging around. The one we have been watching is able to do some foraging for itself, but at least Jason is still doing some feeding. We have only seen one robin fledgling at a time, so the larger two may be already independent, or they all may be hiding well.

Early bird Jason got some worms

Robin fledgling

Robin fledgling

Much to our surprise, Charlie and Alice are also parents of fledged nestlings! They have three confirmed fledglings that are still hopping around our trees making lots of noise and begging lots. They house finch fledglings are extra cute with their small head tufts still showing. 

Alice and Charlie, proud parents

Fledgling #1

And that's not all the exciting news! We have a pair of cardinals nesting outside now :) 

Geoff, our male cardinal, was seen yesterday feeding his mate, Louise. After the feeding, Louise flew straight into a spruce tree and disappeared. With a little investigating, we found her nest that we might be able to see into when she is off it. More news and photos to come on the new family. 

Louise on her nest

Geoff eating locust flowers

Three Cute (?) Robin Nestlings

Jason and Frieda have three nestlings! Two of them are noticeably larger, though they all seem to be growing and getting fed. They've begun stretching their wings already. The one at the front of the nest is still getting all of the camera attention though...

Grumpy looking nestling

Always looking around expecting food

Feeding time

It's been hard to see what's happening with Charlie and Alice, but based on their behaviour, she is either still incubating, or just beginning to feed nestlings. Hopefully some clear signs on their progress soon!

Finch Fights, Good Parenting, and Unexpected Visitors

Charlie had a busy day yesterday defending his territory and female from another male. He sang for much of the day, and had several intense air battles with the intruder. He seemed to do his job well and protect Alice. He also is continuing to feed her off the nest while she does her fledgling display. 

Jason and Frieda have at least two confirmed nestlings now (only one pictured still)! Jason was very active yesterday bringing food both to the nestlings and to Frieda. 

A female summer tanager also stopped by briefly to forage in the few trees. She is one of many migrants arriving in and passing through southern Ontario now.

Nestling

Jason feeding Frieda on the nest

Female Scarlet Tanager

Nestlings!

Jason and Frieda are parents! Frieda did most of the feeding today, and still spent most of the day sitting on the nestlings, but Jason was around much more as well and made a couple feeding trips. This afternoon we got the first glimpse of one of the nestlings, and a first photo! More updates on number of nestlings coming soon. 

Frieda feeding nestlings

Jason sitting below nest tree

Nestling number one!

Alice seems to be on the nest now (no sightings today). Charlie was seen several times going into the nest for a brief time. 

Courting a Finch

Charlie went for the next step of courting today. Instead of just sitting in the tree tops singing his little heart out, he brought Alice lots of food and fed her in their courting ritual. Every couple hours today he would arrive near the nest and she would come out and beg for food like a fledgling. He was prepared every time with a mouthful of food. Photos and videos can show how well he did and their courting display. 

See the combined video in HD at House Finch Courting Behaviour.

Jason

A few days of missing reports, but not many big new developments with the birds. The house finches were building rapidly on Thursday, with Alice making frequent trips into and out of the nest while Charlie watched. They were absent on Friday despite the beautiful weather, hopefully a sign that she is preparing to lay. 

Jason and Frieda are still doing well. Jason was actually present on Friday - he was foraging near the nest for much of the day, and several times while Frieda was foraging, he would perch at or near the nest and watch it. 

Jason below the nest

Jason foraging nearby

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day! Who doesn't want to protect our planet when there are awesome birds like these nesting everywhere?

No new news from Frieda and Jason, our American Robins. She spent the entire day on the nest with a couple short feeding breaks. 

Charlie and Alice, our House Finches, continue to be active. Alice was only spotted briefly as she left the nest a few times. Charlie seems to go everywhere with her now, and always perches at the top of his tree while she is in the nest or nearby. Their nest is just visible through the branches, and seems to be taking shape nicely.

Charlie perched next to his nest (circled)

Charlie waiting for Alice at the nest

Charlie taking off (nest directly behind his head)

Windy Day

Frieda startled by an extra strong wind gust

Frieda standing on her nest

Today was a very windy day, but Frieda still spent most of her day on the nest. She sat on the edge of the nest for a short period, but there was still no sign of eggs in the nest. 

Jason was again spotted briefly this morning, but if Frieda is indeed sitting on eggs now, his part in the process is limited until he has young to feed. 







Charlie and Alice were both at the nest briefly this morning carrying grass, but disappeared during the windy portion of the day. Hopefully some nicer weather later this week will show us how close they are to breeding.

An afternoon nap in the sun

Meet the Cast

"It was the best of times..." - C. Dickens

The windows of the office and lab space of the Love Lab offer nice views of several spruce trees, and with the arrival of spring two species of birds have decided to make these trees their home. This blog will follow these two families as they attempt to nest and produce and raise their young. So, to meet the parents:

American Robins - Jason and Frieda:

Frieda settled into her nest

Jason and Frieda were very sneaky about the start of their nesting attempt. A week ago they were initially spotted, and Frieda has since begun laying. Here she is today, sitting on her nest where she spent about half the day. Due to the location of the nest, we cannot yet see how many eggs have been laid, but we are hopeful we will soon see the tops of some beautiful blue eggs. Jason has been very camera shy thus far...

House Finches - Charlie and Alice:

Charlie perched on top of his tree in the sun

Charlie sitting just above his well-concealed nest

Alice looking about in a neighboring locust tree

Charlie is not at all shy. In fact, when the office windows are open, his singing can be heard through the entire work day. Alice is quite sneaky, but both her and Charlie have been seen carrying lots of fine material into their nest. Seems like they could be finishing soon!

As house finches like to do, they have placed their nest in a very thick part of the spruce, so no photos are yet available. 

Enjoy following these guys through their breeding attempt!