Oh No a Blackbird Nest Uncovered....

2sides2everystory

elsien knows best.

I cut 30 metres of garden boundary hedge the other day and was half thinking of the possibility that there might be a blackbirds nest in it somewhere.

But the hedge has been cut for years back to approximately the same hardwood so the blackbirds know where it is safe to build in the middle and keep their heads below the hardwood level when the cutter bar rattles over their roof

Seriously, it is already late June. In one European country I know there is still a law that rules your boundary hedge must be cut back to no more than 1.8m before Whit Monday - plan to leave it until September if you like but I think there you'll find the local council have done it for you by July and posted you the bill :rotfl:

And the blackbirds there are some of the happiest I have seen too

Fingers crossed for the little family - many more days like today and they'll be out of the nest anyway quite soon gasping for a drink at the birdbath so keep it topped up!

ladylouise62

2sides2everystory wrote: »

Seriously, it is already late June. In one European country I know there is still a law that rules your boundary hedge must be cut back to no more than 1.8m before Whit Monday - plan to leave it until September if you like but I think there you'll find the local council have done it for you by July and posted you the bill :rotfl:

It's illegal to disturb nesting birds, so if you were holding back from cutting a hedge due to belief that birds were nesting I don't think that the council would do anything unless it were causing big problems to the pathway.

.. and I am also itching to cut some stuff back but can't due to birds. For one of the trees I didn't think that it would be a problem as there was nothing there until last week when I watched a Wood Pigeon spend 2 days buliding the nest - I had planned to sort it this week

loucroft

Thanks guys, I didn't think it was so early though - end of June? I guess in my head I've got spring in my mind for new babies (sheep, pigs etc) but birds I hadn't thought of! There are only two left, I saw one flapping his little wings the other day and the parents are still about so thats ok

I feel so guilty still, and our tadpoles/mini frogs died.. I must have done something evil in my past life :-))

2sides2everystory

ladylouise62 wrote: »

It's illegal to disturb nesting birds, so if you were holding back from cutting a hedge due to belief that birds were nesting I don't think that the council would do anything unless it were causing big problems to the pathway.

.. and I am also itching to cut some stuff back but can't due to birds. For one of the trees I didn't think that it would be a problem as there was nothing there until last week when I watched a Wood Pigeon spend 2 days buliding the nest - I had planned to sort it this week

I don't like hurting worms when digging the garden, and sometimes scold myself for swatting flies, but really, you can't make a religion out of it, surely Yes I am sure if we had the hedgecutting rule in the UK you could stop the council dead in its tracks by pointing out the blackbirds.

As for wood pigeons building nests, I think you might be hanging around a long time to see that 2 day affair yield chicks. Wood pigeons are famous for collecting twigs on the offchance and then starting again somewhere else tomorrow

BTW, has anyone else got he feeling that end of June is a bit late for blackbirds compared to what the birdbooks of our youth used to say, and our own eyes confirmed? Nature is struggling with climate change and some species are perhaps reproducing at much higher rates (multiple broods?) as a reaction to adversity.

ladylouise62

2sides2everystory wrote: »

As for wood pigeons building nests, I think you might be hanging around a long time to see that 2 day affair yield chicks. Wood pigeons are famous for collecting twigs on the offchance and then starting again somewhere else tomorrow

She's still on it a week later - I had a pair come the last 2 year on a tree 2 metres away (which I assume to be the same pair) that is no longer there, so they obviously liked the location even if they had to downsize the property :-)

2sides2everystory wrote: »

BTW, has anyone else got he feeling that end of June is a bit late for blackbirds compared to what the birdbooks of our youth used to say, and our own eyes confirmed? Nature is struggling with climate change and some species are perhaps reproducing at much higher rates (multiple broods?) as a reaction to adversity.

I think that they must be confused - I know that I am!!!
But it could also be a last-ditch attempt by a pair who lost earlier broods. I had one pair earlier in the year who lost their lone baby on the day it fledged (not sure what happened, but the body was in the garden). After a week or so of heart-wrenching calling they seemed to go back to the female tucked away whilst the dad collected food, finally achieving one (now not so little) bird.

kerri_gt

2sides2everystory wrote: »

BTW, has anyone else got he feeling that end of June is a bit late for blackbirds compared to what the birdbooks of our youth used to say, and our own eyes confirmed? Nature is struggling with climate change and some species are perhaps reproducing at much higher rates (multiple broods?) as a reaction to adversity.

I think blackbirds have two broods, one earlier and this is the second ... I'm not 100% sure though. We have a nesting pair near us and the noise the male makes is incredible, dawn til dusk he's tweeting away (not helped by us having a cat). He will actually sit a foot away from our cat making the alarm tweet at her, and we've seen him dive-bomb her in the garden.

I think this nest only has one chick (err..think some little kit might have got the other early on, hence daddy blackbird not happy with her ) as I've seen what I think is the chick out flying with mum and dad and them guiding it back to the nest.

Sally_A

The latest I've seen new blackbird eggs/chicks is August.

Normally if you go to cut a hedge with a nest in, the parents really give it welly, so take heed of the birds and sounds around you.

loucroft

kerri_gt wrote: »

He will actually sit a foot away from our cat making the alarm tweet at her, and we've seen him dive-bomb her in the garden.

Wow! Mine aren't quite so, but they are always around.

Update then, just taken a look in the nest and the female was just sat on the side of the nest, I thought she was stiff with shock - no babies now, but they were big and no sign of them in the tree or on the floor.

She let a bird poo go on her way out of the other side when she saw me!

If she attacked me I would have decked it!