Mother Love

The black phoebe pair in our garden has successfully fledged their first batch of nestlings. (This picture is of the fledging a couple of years ago; we missed this year's as we were at work).

Every year, the phoebes come back to our garden, clean out the old nest under the eaves, and lay their eggs. We saw three babies this year, which is typical. A few days ago the young 'uns were standing on the edge of the nest practicing flapping their wings, as their busy parents took turns bringing them them a non-stop supply of bugs, some of which were alarmingly large and leggy. At night, mom tucked herself at the edge of the nest to keep her growing nestlings warm.

Now they have flown. I'm sure they are as demanding and selfish as fledglings everywhere. But their parents did a fine job,and I hope the babies will remember those lessons when they come to build their own nests in years to come.

Happy Mother's Day!