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Laryl | all galleries >> Animal Galleries >> Baby Hummingbirds > END - nest 1
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March 11, 2007

END - nest 1

nest one is gone.. well it was gone and then someone must have found it on the ground
and shoved it back on the branch... no help. The babies were not ready to leave the
nest yet, they didn't have their wing feathers.

A man talked to my friend Linda and she said he told her he had put a paper plate over
the nest. It was done with scotch tape. I found scotch tape at another nest too.
Anyway, I figured the plate was the reason nest 1 was gone. But a day later I now edit,
and admit that it could have been something else....

The nest is right across from a grassy area where kids play. It's unlikely but possible
that a soccer ball or something was kicked into the nest. It's also possible that some
curious visitor to the park touched it or tried to do something else. OR after what
I saw today, it's possible that a roadrunner got it. See story under photos of nest 3.


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comment
Patty 15-Mar-2008 01:50
Your pictures were beautiful. I have a nest outside my bedroom window in a pine tree. There are two babies. My mother's caregiver video tapped the mother feeding them. She flies in very fast; feeds them; and then off again.
I learned the mother has to get bugs and spiders. The babies do not get sugar until the are 21 days old. They need protein up until then. They're so beautiful.
Phyl 20-Apr-2007 17:18
Right out side my front door about 3 feet away in a potted tree I have watched a hummingbird build her nest and lay her eggs and hatch the little sweety. Only one egg hatched. She layed them on March 21st and I notice the first egg hatched on April 8th. I am only 5 feet 1 inch and I only have to tip toe to see into the nest. I am always afraid that the mom will abandon the nest because it is so low...but so far things are good she isnt at the nest very much and sometimes I worry about the baby.
Guest 14-Mar-2007 22:21
How did you learn about these nests? Did other people find the nests before you did and tip you off? Do you think the bike riders, runner and/or walkers somehow tipped off the roadrunner about the nest? How close to the nest are you when you're standing "for hours"? And how close do you have to get to get those closeups of the nest, eggs, and babies? As close as someone with a pocket camera? Just asking.
Laryl14-Mar-2007 17:23
this area is a dedicated, named "hummingbird garden" put in by the city AND this is a major winter destination so the winter visitors are flocking to the hummingbird nests with their pocket cameras by the hundreds. I have stood for hours and watched the parade of people coming, bringing their friends. I have spoke with people who ask me if I know about the nests, and listen while they tell me their friends at the RV park told them. etc. sadly there is constant activity at these nests. I've been amazed they survived at all. It is a tough life for sure, more so than an average park. This same park has a burrowing owl habitat that is man made and well known also. ..busy place. The roadrunner has never been seen in this area but he was half a mile away and likely followed the bike riders, runners and walkers that go back and forth on that path daily.
The Skipper 14-Mar-2007 17:17
Had you thought about the possibility that the apparently well-meaning man with the paper plate and the roadrunner were related? Specifically, related to your activities having attracted their attention to these nests? Biologists who study nesting birds will tell you that human activity too close to a nest can attract the attention of predators, so they're very careful when they check nests. Birds nesting in a busy public park have a tough enough life already. Maybe it's unwise to add to it.
Ramón Burgos-Ruíz 13-Mar-2007 06:44
I told myself last year that I would dedicate time towards photographing hummingbirds this year, but though there are plenty to be seen, I still haven't even begun to set up.
Your shots are amazing - congratulations!
I agree with previous comments; please leave ALL animals alone!
Pathfinder12-Mar-2007 15:54
So sad. some people just can't imgaine that nature has survived for thousands of years on its own
Nick Powell11-Mar-2007 22:32
In the UK certain bird species are protected by legislation and it is an offence to intentionally or recklessly disturb 'active' nests of protected species. Needless to say this type of behaviour would definitely fall into the reckless category. I can totally understand your passion for photographing these beautiful birds and your sadness at this needless loss.