The bird boxes are empty of birds now. Let's hope this is good news. The last time I checked on the baby wrens, the nest was empty. That either means that they were precocious and fledged a few days early at 11 days (15-17 days is typical), or something got them. The nest did not look disturbed, so let's hope they flew away from the nest early. On the other hand, the baby bluebirds spent a comfortable 18 days in their nest before they fledged (17-21 days is typical for bluebirds). I didn't see them leave, but I did see their mother feeding them one evening and the nest was empty the next day. It is getting late in the season, for any more eggs to be laid, so that's probably the last of the baby birds until next year.
Here are a few things I saw this week
during a Second Look.
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| Day lily |
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| Black-eyed Susan |
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| Young rabbit. We are seeing a lot of rabbits this year which usually correlates with a low fox population. |
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| Volunteer celosia that came up in a crack in the sidewalk. |
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| Speaking of volunteers, the coleus and baby's tears in this planter are volunteers. |
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| Hummingbirds are one of a few birds that can fly backwards. They usually fly so fast, that I never notice which way they are flying. However, this one flew straight back for several feet. Very unusual to see. |
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| This may have been one of the last easy meals that the baby bluebirds got. |
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| Tiger lily |
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| Balloon flower bud. When I see these buds, I always think about the Rocky and Bullwinkle episode, Pottsylvania Creeper, that features a man eating plant looking something like this--except a lot bigger. |
