All over for another year ...

13th June 2012
Woke up this morning to be greeted with an empty nest ! All 4 remaining youngsters decided that today was the day to make their way out into the big wide world. To be fair it was a lovely morning, for a change. Checking back on the footage, it seemed that they wanted an early start, so much so that I missed the first one to fledge! Once the first one had gone, the other 3 quickly followed suit, even 'runty' (which was a surprise), and by 05:15am they were all gone. Good Luck little fellas ...


So after all the trials and tribulations, a fairly successful season. Fred & Freda managed to raise 50% of their brood, which is slightly below the average, but under the circumstances a remarkable achievement. 
So that's it ... until next year, when we will do it all again (if we're lucky)! I hope you've enjoyed watching Fred & Freda's story, I wish you a great summer (surely the weather must improve!), and hope to catch up with you again next Spring.


Fledglings Nos.3&4

Fledgling No. 5 

... and then there were 4

12th June 2012
At last we have a fledging !! At 18:27 this evening, the first brave soul decided it was time to venture out into the big wide world. He had been jumping up to the hole all day, but thought better of taking the plunge, then at 18:27 he just jumped up and flew off, quite late in the day really, so lets hope he finds a safe haven. Weather permitting, I suspect that at least 2 of the remaining 4 will go tomorrow. Lets hope that Fred & Freda continue to return to the nest to fatten up little 'runty' !


Fledgling No. 1..

The remaining 4 ..

A damp squib !

11th June 2012
Well, after the big build up yesterday .. Nothing much happened today !! Mind you, not really surprising, after another miserable and wet day. All 5 chicks stayed in the dry for at least another day. Maybe tomorrow, the braver ones may venture out, I'll keep you posted.

Lots of excitement today ...

10th June 2012
The tension and excitement is palpable !! Sad to report that we are now down to 5 chicks, looks like runty chick couldn't handle the constant trampling by the others. However, the remaining  5 have been very active all day long. I was convinced that the biggest 2 would make a break for it today, they have been wing flapping and jumping up to the hole constantly, and I think Freda thinks they are ready too, as she has been sitting on a branch outside and encouraging them out and both parents have been feeding them from the hole, but none of them have been brave enough to take the plunge yet !
Is this the last time we will see all 5 together ?? (I think it might be ...)

 Here is Fred feeding from the hole ..

Here is all the action :

Hole feeding ..

Wing flapping ..

Peeking out ..

All lined up ..

Final feed before bedtime ..

No rain .. at last !!!

9th June 2012
Finally a day without rain !! Fred & Freda are now bringing in lots of food regularly, so lets hope the chicks can build up their strength for the final push. Have been watching and willing on Freda, as she desperately tries to remove the dead chick from the nest, but not succeeding as it's just too heavy for her to lift to the hole. She keeps persevering though, bless her. Lets hope that she does manage to remove it, and not jeopardise the success of the remaining brood.


Well despite numerous efforts, Freda still didn't manage to remove the dead chick. However the remaining 6, seem to be coping well. There is lots of jostling in the nest now, as its getting a wee bit cramped ! A couple of the 'senior' chicks are preening themselves and practising wing flapping, at the expense of the 'juniors' who are acting as stepping stones !


Not surprisingly, Freda has again decided not to roost with them tonight, no chance of getting any sleep in there now !! 


I think 2 or 3 of the chicks, will venture out into the big wide world within a day or two, hopefully the remainder, will continue to be fed and follow suit a few days later.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61N_KfB4ZVE&feature=plcp

Still hanging on ...

8th June 2012
Well we still have 6 chicks ... Despite the weather, the parents are bringing in enough food for them to hang on. Noticed that tonight is the first time that Freda didn't roost with the chicks, this usually happens when the youngsters are getting ready to fledge, and are capable of keeping themselves warm, but they seem a little way off that yet ! 

No dramas today !

7th June 2012
Well I am happy to report that we still have 6 chicks. Despite the horrible weather, the parents are still managing to bring food in to their hungry offspring. In the clip below, you can see them all lined up and huddling together to keep warm. You can see that there is one chick (bottom right), who is noticeably smaller than his siblings. With the weather forecast for the next day or so not great, lets hope that he can grab himself enough food (when it comes in), to sustain himself.


I still can't get the video uploads to Blogger working, so I will upload the videos to YouTube and post the links here ..


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTc4kA5Hs64&feature=plcp

Some sad news ...

6th June 2012
Well the last few days have brought some highs and lows. All seemed to be going well, with both Fred & Freda making the best of the bad weather. However, there started to appear a noticeable size difference between the chicks, 4 chicks seemed to be getting the lion's share of any food coming in, but they all seemed to be holding their own. Then yesterday, after another miserable wet day with little food, the weakest chick succumbed and perished. Freda quickly removed him from the nest, so we were left with the 'Magnificent 7'. The remaining chicks, are developing fast, and are all now feathered up, and a few of the bolder ones are even wing flapping! Today brought another sad development, as we lost another little one, he was constantly being trampled on by his bigger siblings, and finally gave up :( ... So we now have just 6 of the original 10 remaining. I fear that we may lose at least another one, so I'll monitor their progress carefully, but hopefully all remaining 6 will make it, fingers crossed.

What a day !!

3rd June 2012
What an absolutely miserable day! It hasn't stopped raining for a single minute all day. Freda and Fred have been absolutely dedicated to the cause braving the filthy conditions, and have been managing to bring food into their brood, albeit not as often as they would like. The chicks for their part, seem to be strong, healthy and thriving, despite the meagre rations, and look on course, (all being well), to fledge by next weekend. The weather for tomorrow is more promising, so lets hope that Freda & Fred manage to find an abundance of juicy caterpillars for their hungry brood.

Growing fast ...

30th May 2012
Well believe it or not, the chicks are now 1 week old ! As far as I can see there are definitely eight, I've not managed to find out (yet!) what happened to the other two. Had a bit of scare yesterday, when I thought they may have taken a turn for the worse, as the chicks were looking a bit flat and lethargic, but I guess it was down to the heat, because as soon as it cooled down in the evening, they were full of beans again .. phew ! Looking at the chicks today, it seems that they are developing fast, and some head and wing feathers are already apparent. 
After another warm day, this evening saw the heavens open for a good hour or so, and as soon as it stopped, it became a veritable feeding frenzy, as both Fred & Freda, were returning to the nest every couple of minutes with beaks full of juicy caterpillars. So, I think the chicks will sleep happy and with full bellies tonight !

25th May 2012
Hard to believe that these little ones are only 2 days old, they seem to be doubling in size overnight ! I still can't confirm exactly how many there are, I have definitely counted 8 hungry beaks begging for food, but there could be 9, or even all 10 ! Mum and Dad have been very successful (so far), in bringing in food for their hungry offspring, and seem to be coping well. Hopefully I'll be able to confirm exactly how many chicks there are soon, in the meantime here is a small clip of the chicks with their expectant yellow beaks ..

New life ...

23rd May 2012

Well as predicted, this morning Fred & Freda, have become the proud parents of 7 hatchlings. There are still 3 eggs unhatched, but you may recall, Freda did lay 3 eggs and then disappeared for a few days, before continuing to lay, and I did wonder whether those original 3 eggs would be viable, well it does seem that we have the answer, but you never know tomorrow is another day. Fred has been the doting dad, and is bringing in food regularly, both for Freda and the already hungry little mouths. 

Here we can see Fred popping in to inspect his new offspring, and you can already see the youngsters mouths gaping for food !

Not long now ...

14th May -21st May 2012
Not a lot to report over the past week. Freda has been dutifully incubating her eggs, leaving them only temporarily to stretch her legs, or to seek a quick snack! She is looking a little bedraggled compared to Fred, but he has been out galavanting whilst the expectant mum has spent the last 10 days sitting tight, and carefully tending their future family ! The days of sacrifice will soon be over, the first hatchlings should be appearing any day now, I am expecting to see some little ones by the end of this week at the latest. I'll keep you posted with any news.

Time to wait ...

12th & 13th May 2012
At last, a weekend without rain ! Lots of comings and goings in the nest, mainly for Freda to stretch her legs and for the occasional snack when Fred has failed to deliver! I expect this will be the norm now for a good few days until the hatchlings appear. 
The countdown has begun, and barring any disasters, I am expecting the first eggs to hatch around the 22nd or 23rd May. 

Egg 10 ..

11th May 2012
Well, as predicted, Freda did indeed produce one more egg today, which gives her a total of 10 eggs in her clutch, (going by past experience, I would say that this her lot, but she could prove me wrong!). She has been very attentive, again spending most of the day in the nestbox, tending to and turning the eggs.

Egg 9 !

10th May 2012
Well, as predicted, here is the evidence that Freda has been a busy girl .. A nice big clutch of 9 eggs, someone's going to be busy !!

Freda has spent most of the day in the nest, sitting on the eggs, leaving only briefly to feed, after waiting in vain for Fred to bring her some food !! Judging by this behaviour, it seems like the clutch is complete, and that Freda will now spend most of her time incubating her eggs. However, there is always the possibility that tomorrow may bring egg number 10 ! I'll keep you posted.

Eggs 6,7,8 ??

7th, 8th & 9th May 2012
Not much action to show over the last 3 days ... I am presuming that Freda has continued to lay a new egg each day. However, I cannot categorically confirm this, as Freda has taken to covering up the eggs, so I can't see !! Maybe I'll get a glimpse tomorrow ...

5th egg ..

6th May 2012
Back in the groove now, Freda produces egg number 5 ..

4th egg ..

5th May 2012

After a couple of days getting re-acquainted to her first 3 eggs, Freda has produced egg number 4 ..

2nd May 2012
Well, even though Freda did not come back to roost last night, both she and Fred have been making frequent visits throughout the day ... Fred checks that the coast is clear before Freda returns to check on and turn the 3 eggs ...

Hang on ... What's this ??

30th April 2012
Is she back, or is it a passing visitor ? No, it looks like Freda !! She's checking over the eggs, lets hope they are still viable after the recent cold and wet spell ..

Not looking good ...

27th, 28th, 29th April 2012
Things are looking a bit bleak ... The weather has taken a turn for the worse, and there has been no sign of Fred or Freda for 3 days. The first 3 eggs she laid were left uncovered, and we fear that Freda may have been predated, as she usually returns like clockwork every evening to roost and sit on her eggs ... either that or the couple have abandoned the nest due to the bad weather ... Looks like another failed season ... 

Where have they gone ?

26th April 2012
After laying her 3rd egg, Freda normally returns every night at 1930ish to roost. However, tonight there is no sign of her. Checking back through the recordings, neither Fred or Freda returned to the nest at any time since 0846 hrs this morning ... very strange !!

3rd egg ..

26th April 2012
Egg number 3 safely despatched into the clutch ...

2nd egg ..

25th April 2012
Egg number 2 safely produced ...

1st egg ..

24th April 2012
Look what I've done !! .. Freda produces her first egg ...

22nd April 2012
Freda getting comfy and shaping the cup ready for her eggs ...

21st April 2012 
Nest building continues .. Freda is adding some nice finishing touches !

17th April 2012
Nest building well under way ...

The 2012 season so far ....

Spring is finally here, which once again heralds that time for the birds & bees !!

My NestCam is once again up and running and ready to capture all the action ... fingers crossed !!