Tuesday, August 4, 2009

plump and chubby!!

The day before we left for our trip I happened to catch Daddy wren sitting on my fence with a big juicy green bug in his bill for the juniors..I couldn't believe that this tiny little bird was going to actually be able to gulp down that huge green bug...it looked twice his size!!


I thought for sure he was going to gag as he was having a really difficult time getting that creature in his mouth...but Dad knew what he was doing and kept shoving harder into that little one's bill...good thing for Jr. that he had a stable grip on the inside of that nest hole opening!!

I would have thought that after this huge meal and all his work to swallow it, he would tumble to the nest to take a nap..his tummy being so full!! but no....both he and his brother stuck out three quarters of their hairless little bodies.. yelling. ME! ME! ME!! Dad seems to be feeding all by himself...we have not witnessed both adult wrens at the nest box for a while...I have a feeling something happened to Mom :( .... but Dad is quite the worker..and feeds and feeds...
The photo, below, really shows you how naked their little bodies still are...minus all those little feathers, a lot of fuzz here and there. One of those faces that only a mother or father would describe as "isn't our baby the cutest you've ever seen"...??

...and love them they do... he provided take out delivery.. right to the door everyday and all day. I put out some meal worms near the nest box hoping to help in his quest to find yummies but I'm not sure if they eat these types of worms or not.

By the time we returned his babies had fledged but they are remaining in my White Lilac bush near their nest box. How fast they grew those feathers...we weren't even gone a week and look at these two plump and chubby babies!! How much fun it is to see nature work its miracles so near my back porch.

Notice that tiny little tail!! Today they have been flying more and more from the Lilac to a near by larger tree. Soon, I'm sure they will leave ...on to another adventure with Dad, I guess. Being a single parent sure is a lot of work, my hats off to this little male. I think he did a wonderful job!

20 comments:

Dawn Fine said...

Hee hee..cute little feather-less babes.Amazing how wide open those bills get.
The bug is huge..is it a green catipillar? i couldnt figure out what it was...
In any case it certainly didnt fill those little piglets up!
Nice pics! Love the wide mouth babes!

Trys T. Bear said...

phew...for a second I thought your blog was about me today! ;) haha.
Great pictures, love the two popping out of the house with their mouths wide open!!

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

These are a terrific series of pix for the story of those wren babies. My wren babies fledged this weekend while we were up north. The parents are flying around the yard doing their alarm chatter while they protect their babies from everything.

FAB said...

Excellent series Tina. Just goes to show that those early feeds were not toooo big. Great to see the tenacity of one parent bringing up his youngsters. FAB

Janice K said...

Tina, those are all such neat pictures, but I especially liked the last one with that little tail sticking up. How precious!

Gail said...

Fantastic!

Ruth's Photo Blog said...

Oh so cute!Those little guys with the stubby tails are the cutest things ever.
Blessings,Ruth

Leedra said...

The 2 photos of both the babies hanging out the opening are great! Such a capture! Love the whole series.

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Eve said...

OH I see the air show pictures on the side Tina! COOL!!
Love the babies and that dad wren is teriffic!

NCmountainwoman said...

What a wonderful post! The photographs are terrific and I loved your narrative. Just super!

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Tina: Great captures of the wren and baby. Those birds are all beak as they are maturing.

Shelley said...

That was a very fat juicy green bug (or one of those caterpillar worms perhaps?)! I love seeing their little mouths open so wide! Cute photos!

Wendy said...

Tina, I was awww'ing so much I'm surprised no one in the office came to check out what was going on, lol. Very very cute photos, daddy wren is a hard worker! I do hope mama wren returns unharmed :(
Thanks for sharing these wonderful photos! It's great to witness these kinds of things :)

Jann said...

Very, very nice sequence of photos! Well done! It's wonderful to be able to watch birds with their young.

troutbirder said...

That one great daddy. Great sequence of pictures too Tina!

SaraG said...

AWESOME photo's.
I have really enjoyed my visit to your blog!
Take care!!

jalynn01 said...

The Wrens are really a fun bunch to watch. I never saw such a large bug be stuffed into a little mouth!! Love your birdhouse..it's so pretty. and I enjoyed your story! Wrens are such hard workers and keep the food coming all day long. Great pix!

Dave's Bird Watching Blog said...

Fun pictures, Tina! Hey, I remember that birdhouse from last summer. It was being used by the chickadees if I'm remembering correctly...back when you were just a blogger-in-waiting...undiscovered and contributing your treasures to a new blogger down in NC. Now look at you...you're big-time! (and well deserved too!) That insect being shoved in is priceless!

sylvia murphy said...

Tina,

That is a great sequence. I have not taken may pictures yet this year of birds. Still contemplating a 400mm lens.

I am off to Nova Scotia tomorrow. With luck I might capture a Scarlet Tanager.

Jack said...

Its so cute..nice post..thanks for sharing..keep going..tk[..]

--
Jack
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