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What an amazing week. It was just like one of those Nature shows: birth and death, raising offspring, learning to fly, reaching maturity and leaving the nest… the entire cycle of life in 9 days… Just amazing. |
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August 2003
Monthly Archive
Sat 23 Aug 2003
Fri 22 Aug 2003
When I went to check in on the nest today, I couldn’t find the second chick. The smaller one died and is still in the nest, but the larger was nowhere to be seen. I gave up looking and was preparing to leave for work when I noticed that dove chick had made his way out of the nest, onto our doormat, and appeared to be taking his morning constitutional. He then took flight, crossing the driveway and into a nearby tree. Wow!
When I returned home that evening the chick was just hanging out on one of our front porch wicker chairs, with mom keeping a watchful eye from the hanging plant nest.
I know they’ll be leaving the nest soon, and that makes me a little sad.
Thu 21 Aug 2003
Poor little chick 
Wed 20 Aug 2003
The smaller of the two chicks developed an infection near its beak–I noticed it on Day 3 and didn’t think much about it, but that chick seems to have gotten progressively weaker over the last three days. I don’t know if this one’s going to make it. His larger sibling, however, continues to grow and develop. He is beginning to look more like a bird rather than a fluffy ball of feathers.
These photos are of mom and the larger chick; mom’s sitting on the smaller one to keep him warm. Or suffocate him. We’re really not sure.
Sun 17 Aug 2003
Feathers are are starting to fluff up…
Sat 16 Aug 2003
Mom keeps her babies warm.
Fri 15 Aug 2003
Four years after we moved in, we’ve finally got some dove babies! This. is. SO. exciting.
Over the years, the doves have chosen several different hanging baskets in which to nest. 
The one furthest away from our front door isn’t very sheltered from the elements and I only saw one egg in that one; it disappeared within a week or two. When they tried nesting in the plant closest to the door, they got skittish every time we came and went. I think they may have abandoned the eggs, as I never saw chicks and later saw broken shells on the ground. This year when one of the plants near the center of the porch died, I decided to add some Spanish moss instead of replanting to encourage the doves to use that pot for nesting instead. It seemed to work (and later found the moss possessed the added benefit of serving as camoflauge for the young chicks).
These little guys are just so cute.
