Well I'm excited The Great Tits have returned to the camera Nestbox and are busy building their nest.
Well I'm excited The Great Tits have returned to the camera Nestbox and are busy building their nest.
Hi Euan tits will often cover their eggs and leave them like you mentioned, exciteing times Indeed.She has laid 6 eggs this year.
How'd this play out...curious to know what became of the dead chicks?
My Bewick's Wrens have had a couple years with only 3 chicks. In years past, they've had 5 or more.
This year, when cleaning their box after the 1st brood, I found a bleached out breast plate below the box in the weeds. No organic matter attached to the plate and no other bird parts or feathers in the area.
The plate was too big for a wren chick but it had me thinking.....if they had more than 3 chicks, the others dying off before fledging, what did they do with the dead chicks?
I've cleaned out sparrow boxes as well as nests built in fascias and soffits finding dead chicks and unhatched eggs buried under layers of old nests....defiantly not standing on ceremony.
Can't help to wonder why the wrens only had 3 chicks these past couple years....other than a young 1st year female laying eggs, I have nothing?
Last year when the 2nd brood died off there were 5 chicks. The 1st brood, which made it to fledging, only had 3.
You had a camera in your 2017 box, I'm hoping this year is the same and you can provide insight on how your Great Tits disposed of the chicks?
Thank you so much.