I am delighted to be able to post that the blue tit chicks in our camera Nestbox are getting bigger and stronger! There are still six chicks with one being smaller and as the others get bigger and stronger it is getting pushed further to the bottom of the nest as they climb over each other for space. Unless the smaller chick gets a few good feeds it may not survive. However, on Friday I was very doubtful if any would survive!
Five blue tit chicks are now a week old and you can really see the size difference from the day they hatched in the photos above. I am not sure how old the smaller one is but it really just needs a few good feeds to catch up in size and strength. I have say that we still see them as very small and had no idea they had grown so much!
I am guessing that the warm few days we have had has made it easier for the female to find food. We have seen many spiders going in and she is also bringing in the small fat sprinkles too. I still haven’t seen a mini mealworm coming in but hopefully she will discover them soon so that on any rainy days when she can’t find spiders she will have them. So between spiders and suet sprinkles our chicks are doing fine for the moment – long may this continue!
The photos above were taken from my camera Nestbox on Jun 1st and May 26th 2008.
I hope the wee ones continue to do well!
Who neeeds Springwatch when we have Shirl. Keep the images coming, we wait in anticipation of the fledge (I bet you miss it, I always do 🙂
Great to catch up with the chicks Shirl.
Regards
Karen
I wonder if Mum and Dad know how famous their babies are? 🙂
Will be back to see how they’re doing, so keep posting.
Thanks for the update. I may not always comment, but I always have a look at whats going on in your garden. I hope the warm weather continues for you…. it’s pouring with rain here in the south! Jane
How exciting to see the progress – and glad they are starting to find more food too as I know you were concerned about this. Hope your weather has been better than we’ve had the last few days – it’s been SO wet again – what is going on!?
I was glued to the Great Tits webcam over the weekend and finally managed to see the last one fledge – I managed to miss the rest – but great to see – poor little thing it looked like it was in shock once it had arrived on the branch outside the box – wondering what on earth it should do next!!
Have a good week – Miranda
Hooray for the babies! I hope they all thrive, and I’m rooting for the little one especially. I’ve always had a soft spot for the ‘runts.’
What a lovely blog, I’m sure if the nestboxes in my garden had cameras in them I should never do any work at all!!! Really good, love looking at your stuff, BW Goosey
The chicks do look much better in this picture.
Hi again Nancy, Border, Karen, Sue, Jane, Miranda, Garden Girl, Goosey and Lisa 🙂
Nancy – I hope so too. We are at three now but perhaps she will manage to feed them well enough. Have a great weekend 😀
Border – LOL. Sorry I am late with my replies! I am very surprised that I still have any images from my Nestbox! A fledge would be great to see but I don’t know what the chances are that we will. So far we have had no fledges from this Nestbox. As you say I may miss it anyway if any got to that stage! Have a great weekend 😀
Karen – Yes, for the moment I am not getting time for any garden posts when there is Nestbox action. I have been taking photos and video and the garden has absolutely exploded with growth in this last couple of weeks. Enjoy yours. Have a great weekend 😀
Sue – Well perhaps if Dad did he would return to help! Although I do suspect something happened to him. For the moment three chicks are still hanging on – I really don’t know how with the amount of food the female is bringing in. Thanks for popping by. Have a great weekend 😀
Jane – Nice to hear from you. I completely understand. I do the same with your blog. I expect your nature watch project will be keeping you busy too. I hope it is going well. Our warm weather has continued with only odd spells of rain. I hope it is warmer now with you too. Have a great weekend 😀
Miranda – I don’t know about exciting but it certainly draws you in. The female is finding her own fresh wriggly food now but just not often enough! Very quickly you can see the size differences between the chicks when one gets missed after a few feeds. She now chirps at them to almost to say open wide! Yes, we have been lucky enough to have had good weather recently. Hope it is better for you now. The great tits – are they in your garden or are you watching the Springwatch ones? That must have been wonderful to see. I have never seen a young bird fledge but I can always spot them in my garden after as they are drawn to the tiny trickle of water in my tiny pond!! It is funny to watch them negotiate the rocks to the edge. Have a great weekend 😀
Garden girl– Thank-you! We only have three left now but if they get enough food there is no reason why they can’t thrive now. The little one is gone as is another but I was keeping a close eye on it too. This morning I felt certain the final three would not be with us tonight and they are. They are clearly tough little things. Have a great weekend 😀
Goosey – Thank-you! I am sure I have lost a number of my regular visitors recently as I have only really posted on the Nestbox. It really is absorbing watching what is going on!! The garden is changing too and I’ve also been to a garden show and I have to find time to post on that and get around to the blogs I like to visit too. I enjoyed my visit to yours. Have a great weekend 😀
Lisa – thanks for commenting on all my recent postings. I have not been able to find the time to browse your blog (and others) and I know I have been missing lots. Yes, the chicks did look better in this picture I agree. Have a great weekend 😀