Poor baby!!!

There hasn’t been much to see on the very short quick trips I’ve made around the complex the last few days…

water levels are remaining pretty stable, the sun is just a tad too warm for most of the birds and the mosquitoes are getting thicker, and thicker…however a trend has shown up at home with the few birds venturing out…

a great carry on alerted me today, to the first young American Goldfinch of the season.  That cinnamon coloured one is a youngster…noticed also that some of the males are already loosing their clear yellow ‘breeding’ colours.

there was a Chestnut backed Chickadee family out there this morning (not sure if this is a young one or a ‘worn’ adult.  Seems most of the Steller’s Jays around right now are young ones, and the first young Black Headed Grosbeak showed up yesterday….

but the youngest, and saddest, baby to show up today was this poor little thing….I could hear it calling and calling and finally managed to spot it…

and there was daddy Spotted Towhee, trying to feed it.  This baby is far to young to be away from the nest.  Yesterday there was a tree cut down and some shrubs severely pruned close to this area and I have a horrible feeling there must have been a Towhee nest under those shrubs (they nest on or very low to the ground) and this poor little guy must have got chased out of the nest early (note the blood on the wing).  At least daddy is feeding it – I don’t know if that means that mom is still sitting or what – this would obviously be a second hatching, as Towhee usually nest very early in the nesting season.

here is another look at the sad little creature – let this be a reminder that if you must do any tree or shrub pruning, to be very careful and examine the site carefully before you start – birds in our area start nesting as early as March and continue on until almost August.  I shudder to think about how many baby birds have met their demise in our complex alone, just from those that have to attack everything that is green with pruners and weed eaters!