Birds in New Jersey 2015
8 May 2015 - Chickadees and their nest box
Once or twice a day, if we're lucky, we see a chickadee leave or enter the nest box outside the porch.
Around 2 p.m., after tapping on the outside of the nest box, the photographer opens the side door to see what's inside.
No bird (the tapping is to ensure the little bird flies out before opening the wall, Truman Show-style). There's a mass
of nesting, hidden by being out of focus and by the reflections on the plexi inner wall.
Trying to see if there are any eggs, but the camera and lighting are not cooperating.
A few minutes later, the photographer again taps on the nest box. No response. So, the side door is opened. And, surprise!
There is a little chickadee, perhaps brooding, perhaps taking care of several eggs.
Now we know there were eggs at this time: the first eggs hatched on 15 May, a week after this photo was taken.
Trying to peer down into the nest a week later (15 May), we saw two little eggs and one tiny pink moving thing.
In the days before and since, we have seen a chickadee poke its head out, and enter and exit.
A video of the chickadee in its nest box >>
Another video of the chickadee in its nest box >>