Jack knocked on my door last night, he wanted to show me something.
Jack renovates and sells tractors and other farm machinery and he can often be found working in the yard, he also helps out with the sheep and any other jobs that need doing.
He wanted to show me a Blackbird nest.
It is in his tractor. Under the bonnet.
I am nervous about how I approach this. I don’t want to do anything to disturb the nest but I do want to have a look. The parent birds don’t seem to be around so I am going to lift the bonnet.
There are four chicks. Their eyes are open. This is cool I am going to try to watch them develop but this is a different situation from the Swallows, I have to be very careful around the nest.
There is something that I should tell you. Survival rates are very poor for the Blackbird, both eggs and nestlings. At best only about 30% of nests achieve fledged young. They are very vulnerable to predators but the most important factor seems to be weight, the birds have to be getting enough food.
Well I am going to watch them anyway and we shall see how they do.
We shall feed them up.
You take what you need my friend, never for a minute did I think that you were greedy and of course I haven’t got a Blackbird gun.
A Tramp in the Woods 
Brilliant!
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Thank you. I am hoping that they do okay. The Blackbirds are well fed so fingers crossed.
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That’s excellent, I had blackbirds nesting in my back garden and at the front of my house also, unfortunately the nest at the back was raided (I’m guessing by Magpies as there are lots here) and I found 5 eggs on the ground that had been pecked open before they hatched, the nest in my conifer at the front of my house survived though, I did not get a chance to see if they fledged as I only ever got to see the Blackbirds flying back and forth to the conifer then disappearing inside, but I did see a young Blackbird getting fed by its parent on my back fence last week so you never know 🙂
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Thanks Marco. I haven’t looked in on them today. I sat close to the tractor and listened but they don’t make much noise. Tomorrow if it isn’t raining I might leave my camera out there on a tripod recording video. The Swallows didn’t mind that arrangement. I would like to see how often the parents come and go. Good to hear that at least one of your chicks made it 🙂
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