Psilos
Bird Journal |
Friday August
8th 2008 |
||
"New
life " |
||
The sun is shining and there
is a stiff breeze on the air over the lake. It is time that the chicks
of the great Crested grebes should hatch and a quick glance at an empty
nest tells me that this is indeed the case.The nest is along way out
over the water and i can see the female sitting patiently in the water.
She is very still and must have babies on her back but as yet I cannot
see them. |
||
 |
||
| Then the male
returns with a small fish and there is movement. Little heads can clearly
be seen bobbing about but I cant work out how many. They can only be
a day old at the most. Then they take to the water. Three young chicks
healthy and strong and already very good at swimming. |
||
 |
||
There are so many
dangers here and there is a high mortality amongst Grebes. Often only
one chick will survive. From tomorrow I am going on holiday for a few
days(terrible timing) and I can only hope and prey that some of the
chicks will still be alive when I come back. As the get older they get
much tamer and come very close. it is then that I am hoping to photograph
them better. |
||
 |
||
Here the male seems
to be doing a spot of nest rebuilding. As I left the female had gone
to sit back down in the nest and went to sleep. For the time being the
family will still use the nest to roost in. |
||
 |
||
The Black swans are still sitting.
The first egg was probably laid around the 5th July but incubation does
not begin until all the clutch is laid. On average they lay around six
eggs with one egg a day being laid and incubation lasts for 35-40 days.
By my reckoning the eggs should hatch sometime late next week. I am
hoping and preying that whilst I am away I do not miss this more precious
event. |
||
