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!