Best incubator and brooder
I've
been outdone by a one ounce bird. All year, I've been struggling
to decipher the mysteries of incubation
then keeping the chicks
alive until they're ready to fend for themselves.
Meanwhile,
with little fuss, our song sparrow
has hatched all four of
her eggs and raised them until they're nearly fledged. I see
her
perched here and there with insects in her mouth at least once a day,
and the chicks were so well fed that they only cracked their eyes
sleepily
when I stuck the camera lens down onto the nest.
All this despite a
variety of disasters that I did nothing to
avert. I forgot to mention the nest before Mark mowed the garden,
but its location tucked up against a stump saved the day. The
cats both came down to frolic in the mule garden as I planted there
last week and our dog is always patrolling, but none caught the
scent. Despite all of these potential catastrophes, four eggs
turn into four chicks with nary a
loss. Maybe I should ask my favorite sparrow if she's willing to
take on an apprentice?
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