• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

My Pleasure to Introduce To You.... (1 Viewer)

Chickadeedeedee

Chickadeedeedee

Well-known member
our very own, Baby Bill, the Orange Weaver Finch.

BoscoandConnie037.jpg


and here we have Bill the Egg (inside my wedding ring) and the other egg of the clutch. Baby Bill was once inside an egg like these.

BoscoandConnie023-1.jpg


Lydia ;)
 
Awww! He is absolutely adorable Lydia.

"Hi baby Bill, pleased to meet you, & welcome to exbeeb"


The eggs are weeny! Bless!
Good idea using your ring to demonstrate the size, thanks for showing us the lovely pics Lydia.


"Nighty Night Little Bill" |=o|
 
Thanks. We think he's adorable too!

I handed the film over to get developed a while ago and the lab lost them. EEEEEKKKK!!!
I went back repeatedly and finally got them back today. The Baby Bill picture was taken on Christmas Day, when he fledged and made his debut in the aviary. He is still the first to get on my shoulder and wants to cuddle.

Dear little Bill the Egg fit with room to spare in my ring. Amazing that someone could be so tiny or even smaller, say, a hummingbird!

Lydia
 
AAAAAAAaaaaaaahhhhhhh! It's a lovely thing when a bird wants a cuddle, I used to know two very loving Amazon Parrots and how anyone can say birds don't feel anything I don't know. Best of luck with little Bill in the Egg, too.
 
Oh wow...lovely start to the day to see such an adorable little creature. so glad that you got your pictures back, that is always my fear when I take a film in with seriously precious moments on......digital has its benefits, but I'm still keeping my SLR!
 
He is so cute Lydia, good luck with baby Bill. :t:

Thanks for the pic, the egg looks about the size of a Smartie sweet! Amazing!!
 
Hi Lydia,

Thanks for the lovely photos. Dead pleased that you finally got your film back, I 'lost' a roll once, well they processed it wrong and I know how annoying it is. No problems like that with digital!

I didn't realise that the eggs were that small. If you still have one, or can work it out from your wedding ring, could you tell me the length (mms for preference but I can convert), I'd like to compare with (say) Long-Tailed Tit and Goldcrest eggs.

Have you dug your way to daylight yet?

Bill
 
Thanks all! He is a cutie! The egg is 1.4 cm long.

Dug out, you ask? BLIZZARD WARNING right now and the poor birds are huddled up against all the windows to keep out of the wind.

I can look out the window but just see white! No trees, no buildings... nothing.

L.
 
Ahhh that white out feeling...Of course you guys are prepared for this stuff.
Unlike the time I drove from Phoenix to the Grand Canyon and got stuck in a blizzard just out of flagstaff...wearing shorts and t-shit :'D and later on when living in Albuquerque a couple of us flew up to Portland on business and of course just had to see Mt Hood. It was only when we got up to the ski lodge did we realise why everyone was wearing full skiwear!!!,,as we pretended to be so cool walking into the lodge in jeans and t-shirts to get some heat and a bite to eat... B :) B :) Those were the days.. :D :D
 
Hi Lydia,

Thanks for the measurement. 14mm, that IS small. As I suspected from your photo that lies just between Goldcrest (13.6mm) and Long-Tailed Tit (14.2mm) of our birds. There ARE smaller ones in the world, Humming Birds go down to about 12mm, but what surprises me is that Bill is a Weaver-Finch and our smallest Weaver-Finch, the Tree Sparrow has an egg 19.3mm long.

You've spoken often about these birds but it never occured to me to ask what they are exactly, I'm assuming that they are Euplectes orix or a sub-species; do you have a photo of the adults?

Bill.
 
Hi again.

The Orange Weaver Finch fledgling is Euplecies Orixftanciscana. He is a miniature image of the adult. Both the male and female are indistinguishable when not in breeding season and do look like Baby Bill, but larger and with a tail! LOL!

I checked a website where I know used to have a very good photograph of the adults but their photo is gone. Sorry but I'll need to give you these from our aviary.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/chickadeedeedee/Beeb/BoscoandConnie044.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/chickadeedeedee/Beeb/BoscoandConnie045.jpg

The male is in full breeding plumage with his orange and black. The other bird in the OPEN flight cage is one of the females. The birdie on top you ask? A Black-capped Chickadee(dee-dee) of course!

Sorry they are of a poor quality with the lighting but those are what I could find. I know I have others but that might take time.

Lydia
 
Hi Lydia,

Thanks for the info and photos.

That confirms what I thought, your birdies are a subspecies of the RED BISHOP (E orix), which is a common native of Africa S of the Sahara. What interests me is that Linda (aka Chanteuse) had an escaped Red Bishop visiting her garden for quite a long time a couple of years ago. Spectacular birds.

I'm even more surprised at the smallness of that egg, the only info that I have on the Euplectes genus gives the eggs as being 18-25mm long. From the name that you give yours appear to be a subspecies that doesn't appear naturally (well I can't find them in my 'Complete Birds of the World') so maybe they have been bred down in size as aviary birds?

If you put 'Red Bishop' into Google there are plenty of photos of those around, are they the same?

Bill.
 
bill moss said:
That confirms what I thought, your birdies are a subspecies of the RED BISHOP (E orix), which is a common native of Africa S of the Sahara. What interests me is that Linda (aka Chanteuse) had an escaped Red Bishop visiting her garden for quite a long time a couple of years ago. Spectacular birds.
Bill.
Click to expand...

Bonjour chère Lydia, sorry not to have been in touch for so long! :hi:

Your little "Bill" (named after our dear friend, I trust?) is a sweetie! Oooh, I'd love to give him a cuddle (both "Bill" and Bill!!! o:) )

As Bill commented, I had an escapee Red Bishop flitting around my garden two years ago - he seemed to feel quite at home, splashing in the bath with the Spadgers and helping himself to whatever food I put out. I got quite a surprise when he first appeared - usually our escapees are Budgies! :-O

After a bit of research, it was Bill who finally identified him as a Red Bishop - such a handsome chap, he was... Alas, after a couple of months he disappeared (and I don't really want to know what happened to him), but he provided a splash of colour all summer long... Having looked at your photos of the Orange Weaver Finch, he looks exactly like "my" RB! What memories he brought back! :D

Anyway, please take good care of Little Bill... hopefully Big Bill will be able to look after himself, eh? ;)

Warmest wishes - Chanteuse/Linda
 
Hi Bill.

I have eggs from other years that were abandoned and all are 13-14mm. My understanding is that they are the Red Bishop. Perhaps having been bred in captivity over time there is an evolution of sorts and the size has decreased?

Strange as it may seem coming from me, having soooo many birds, I'd rather the birds do stay free rather than captive. However, better to be captive bred than caught from the wild and imprisioned.

Hi Linda! So nice to see you!

Yes. Our little Bill is named after our dear friend, Bill! How exciting to see a Red Bishop in your garden. We had some sort of parrot for a few moments in October years ago. Hope he was brought in from the cold before it was too late!

Our Baby Bill is quite the charmer! ;)

Lydia
 
Hi Lydia,
Ooooo I nearly missed this thread!! I'm so glad I managed to spot it, 'cos your "Little Bill" is a real cutie-pie. It is sooooo amazing to think he was in that teeny-weeny egg!! Please take, (and show us) more photos as he 'grows up'.
All the Best to You Lydia, and to 'Li'l Bill', & all your other 'Special friends' and Family,
 
Hi Lydia,

He's such a beautiful sight to see, an adorable little thing. Your ring certainly gives an idea of the size it's grown from, the miracles of Nature! Thanks so much for letting us see him.

Sue.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 17 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

K
Fledgling Torresian crow death
Replies
3
Views
631
01101001
01101001
S
Old bluetit nest.
Replies
1
Views
579
Kits
Kits
P
Need help with baby mistle thrush
Replies
8
Views
903
Penejon
P
S
Abandoned Finch nest
Replies
2
Views
1K
maplekong
M
R
Interesting behavior of Eurasian coots after losing an egg
Replies
5
Views
557
delia todd
delia todd

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top