3rd
April....Female (left) begging food from the Male (right).
Note the horizontal pencil line some 75mm up the left hand
side of the box. As the nest is constructed it provides a
good idea of how deep the structure is.
4th
April...Moss and some grass is brought in daily now. Up to
100 visits by the female (who does the majority of the building)
during daylight hours. The box is abandoned during the night.
7th
April...The nest cup is now forming although the floor of
the box is still visible.
9th
April...Male feeding the female a small grub. She called and
called until he came into the box with food.
21st
April...Nest structure is now lined with grass, then feathers
and fleece or wool. Note the 75mm line has almost disappeared.
The Female has been roosting in the box from 5 minutes before
sunset each day since Good Friday. Her feathers are puffed
up against the cold and her head is tucked round under her
wing.
22nd
April...The first sign of eggs. They are usually laid early
in the morning then covered with wool and feathers. One egg
is usually laid each day so you would expect the first one
to have been laid on Easter Monday. A clutch of eight or more
is expected then incubation will begin.
28th
April...The clearest view so far of the eggs. At least eight
are visible. This picture was taken at 7am just after the
female left the nest. The box remains empty for most of the
day with just small amounts of wool or feathers brought in
occasionally. The male can be heard calling around his territory
throughout the day and the female begging to be fed. The feeding
usually takes place in a nearby tree or hedge under cover.
Tues
29th...Nine eggs this morning. The clutch is almost if not
complete
Weds
30th...No more eggs have been laid today. The male is now
feeding the female inside the box more frequently and she
is sitting regularly. Incubation has probably started.
Click
here for a short film of feeding. You may need to be
patient with the download on a slow connection as the file
is around 1.65 Mb even when compressed
Weds
30th...A typical picture of the female incubating the clutch.
She is awake and quite twitchy, frequently scratching, fiddling
with the nest material and turning the eggs with her head.
