This little baby boy was so keen to go out and play that he arrived three weeks early. Now he is resting
Momma Bird with her babies.
[Spotted Dove][1] Hatchlings no more than a day or a two old. Catching sight of them turned out to be very difficult. The wooden rafter blocks them from view. And when mama bird is also in the nest they are completely obstructed. In fact I didn’t know the eggs had hatched until at least a day after the event.
The nest is a clumsy affair but the location has been chosen wisely. There are two shikras in the neighbourhood and hatchlings like this would be easy prey for them when the mother bird is away. But because this nest is almost inside the house the [Shikra][2]s are likely to keep away. The same cannot be said about cats though. Yet this rafter is two high for our lazy cats to reach.
[1]: http://photos.raditha.com/archives/a-nest-amongts-the-rafters.html
[2]: http://photos.raditha.com/archives/shikra.html
This spotted dove has built her nest amongst the rafters in my Verandahs. They are a close relative of pigeons so it’s no wonder that the spotted doves are not shy of humans.
In dry weather the roofing sheets which are just a few inches above or head become too hot to touch, yet she doesn’t mind. Maybe it’s beause they help keep the eggs warm when the goes away to gather food. But then her husband takes over the egg warming job.
Little Taylor Akhila Francis Holden sticks his tongue out. Hope he doesn’t grow up hating his middle name like most of us
