You may have seen on my blog that a mama Carolina wren was nesting in a sombrero hanging on our garage wall. She was there for several weeks before Easter. As soon as I found the nest, we kept the door open, but who knows how many times she might have been locked away from them before that.So today I decided it was time (they are supposed to hatch in 14-16 days) and I put the hat nest and eggs into the garbage can.
But when I did that, I counted 11 eggs and there were only 7 before.
I don't know why I did it after I'd already gotten rid of the eggs, but I looked online just one more time for what happens when the eggs don't hatch and what the mama does. All the other times I googled it I came up with nothing, but today I found a resource that says that birds will sometimes lay a second clutch of eggs later on top of the unhatched ones, since the nest is already made.
Oh no!
That would explain why there were now 5 more eggs.
So after I had a really good cry, my Mom convinced me to go out and try to save it all. I used a paper towel folded over like a pot holder to put the nest back in the sombrero. Then I took a tablespoon and gently lifted all the eggs I could find out of the trash can and into the nest and then I hung the sombrero back in the garage.
Checked a little bit ago and mama is sitting on the eggs again. I just hope there are some viable ones in there – think I got 7 back into the nest – hope some of them are the new ones, but that was all I could find. One broke and I couldn't get the others.
At least I tried and I feel better. And I learned a lesson. Well, maybe two lessons - don't move nests until there is absolutely no adult activity, and ... keep the garage door closed all the time so they won't make nests in my garage.
Or, (more likely) put a birdy – door in our garage!
Or move the sombrero outside to a protected location?
ReplyDeleteI hope to read a future post saying that those eggs have hatched!
ReplyDeleteI know exactly how you feel. We are waiting for a clutch to leave the nest now so that we can reclaim our grill. We have carefully moved it to a better spot with more shade so that the chicks don't overheat in the the sun. I go out everyday and take a peak at them. :-)
ReplyDeleteOh, fingers crossed for a happy ending to this saga, Diana. You are a grand steward of your land and the wildlife on it, and you go out of your way to preserve and help everything around you. Don't beat yourself up for a mistake we all might have made. She just really really likes your garage!
ReplyDeleteWow, what a story. Everything you did makes perfect sense! I hope a few of those eggs hatch:-) I had a Carolina Wren nest in an artificial hanging plant. Both parents were constantly in and out of the nest, feeding the babies. I never actually saw them leave the nest...and thought they had died. But there is no trace of them so I must have missed their exit. I took the plant down and tossed it out as soon as they were gone. It was something I'd forgotten to take down over the winter! You just never know where these birds are going to settle down!
ReplyDeleteI'm keeping my fingers crossed for a happy ending Diana. We had a nest in a container plant on our patio this year and the babies just fledged a week or so ago. I haven't removed the nest yet, but I have watered the poor plant.
ReplyDeleteA carolina wren has built a nest in a planter on my deck right beside the back door. Yesterday there were 3 beige eggs, lightly speckled with brown, and one light blue egg in the nest. Today there are 4 of the beige eggs. Does anyone know what the blue egg is from?
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