They Flew the Coop

This is the second year in a row that a house finch couple made a nest in my bird feeder.

I remember last year watching this busy very hardworking little finch and her mate start their nest. I thought, “That’s what I get for not filling the feeder fast enough.”

I thought, “What a stupid bird. Doesn’t she know that that’s a bird feeder?”

Then I thought about it.

The feeder is a dome-type feeder designed to keep squirrels and large aggressive birds like Blue Jays out. Hmmm.

And it happens to be located right next to a large tube feeder that I keep filled most of the time. And the dome feeder is right around the corner from my little pond. Maybe the finch wasn’t so stupid after all. Maybe she was downright smart.

I’m the one who decided to get a house in the mountains, away from modern conveniences like Starbucks and Peet’s.

Surrounded by little tweety birds. We aren’t even hooked up to city water or sewer. I can’t even get a pizza delivered up here. Who’s the stupid one?

Last year she laid five eggs: she and hubby saw that all hatched, all survived, and all fledged.

Déjà vu this year all over again: five eggs, five babies, five fledglings.

Now they are gone.

What do I do now?

I guess I’ll clean it and turn their bedroom back into a kitchen once again.

Comments

[Jacqueline]

Wow, beautiful. What a great series of photos!

[kate]

That is one smart bird! I love the first picture. I think you are smart too, for choosing to live in a beautiful location over closeness to Starbucks et al.

I got a kick out of seeing the lone Delphinium among the daisies.

[guppyman]

Oh how I wish I was nowhere near a Starbucks... That would make me very very happy!

Cool birds... Good luck with the remodel of their house...

[chigiy]

Jacqueline,
Thank you.

Kate,
That bird is smart. When the sun was beating down on the feeder and her babies were panting. I tied a rag around the feeder to keep the heat out. She even had ME taking care of her babies.
I'm glad you liked the Delphinium.

Guppyman,
You're right, I can live without Starbucks. But with two boys, it's the pizza delivery service I miss.