Mockingbirds

By far, the most intriguing of all animal classes are birds. Their colors cover the complete rainbow. Their calls and songs are more varied and beautiful than perhaps all other animals’. They mate for life. Most are fiercely territorial and will protect their young with unbridled courage.

And….they can fly! Geese have been seen at 30,000 feet where the air is so rare, that humans would pass out from oxygen deprivation. Yet they can fly for hours and even days without stopping. Birds are and have been a source of awe and inspiration for humans for thousands of years. It’s no wonder that bird watching is the most popular outdoor pastime in America.

In southwest peninsular Florida, the Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottosis) is the prevalent species of bird. It is also awarded the noble distinction of State Bird. But not all appreciate the birds’ special characteristics. Messy, noisy, pesky and infesting are occasional descriptions. But love them or dislike them, they are a native species and probably here to stay.

Northern Mockingbird



I have discovered a small mocking bird nest in a shrub bordering my garage. It is made of dried twigs and about the size of a softball. This was on April 24. Two days later, two blue speckled eggs appeared. By April 27, there were three eggs. I noticed the small female leaving the nest every time I opened the garage or walked by. I thought, “What a dumb place to make a home”. But then I thought, “What an opportunity for me to follow and photograph a young mother mocking bird raising a family”! So here I begin. I hope to chronicle over the next month or so the stages of mocking bird birth and growth and maternal nurturing.

Well Hidden Nest
 




Mockingbird Eggs

April 28: A total of 4 eggs now occupy the nest. The mother is spending a lot of time incubating them, with only brief excursions for food. The gestation period is 12 to 13 days, so if all goes well, I can expect hatchlings between May 6 and the May 11.  I worry that my daily excursions will frighten her into abandoning the nest. But I think she is getting use to me being around. Every time I walk by, she flutters away and returns minutes later when the coast is clear.

4 Eggs Now

May 1: The female continues to incubate the eggs with short trips away to feed. The male is also always nearby. Neither wanders more than couple of hundred of feet from the nest. Their favorite tree is a small oak very close to the shrub. It was initially hard to tell the mother from the father. (Other than only the mother sits the nest.) But I can now spot their differences. The mother is grey with a white belly and only a slight splash of white on her wings. She is a little plump. The male is no bigger, has the same general coloring, but appears to be more aerodynamic, with a sharper beak. A more obvious splash of white is on his wings.

Female



Male

May 4: The mother is still sitting on the 4 eggs, seeming to know what will soon happen. A third mockingbird appeared in my side yard today. He (or she) was not welcome. Both the male and the female dove at the intruder, squawking, and continue to pester him until he moved to the top of a neighbor’s house. A few days ago, my resident male literally attacked a grey squirrel that had climbed onto the roof and apparently invaded their territory. The squirrel left. I am amazed at the bravery these small creatures are showing to protect their unborn young. So far, I have not been attacked. But things might change when the eggs hatch. If that happens, I will have to use a different exit and entrance to the house.

May 8: Day 12 for the first eggs in the nest. I expect them to hatch at any minute.

 One of the amazing talents of the mockingbirds is their abilty to mimic (mock) other birds. They have a variety of calls, shrieks and whistles. I have even heard them mimic frogs and crikets!

May 10: Two chicks hatched early this morning right on schedule, 13 days! They are about the size of a marble. Mother and babies are doing fine. They are moving and she is making many trips to and from the nest, only leaving for a couple of minutes. She’ll be very busy when two more chicks arrive in a day or so.

Two Chicks, Hours Old



May 11: Now there are four very hungry hatchlings. Mother and father are both very busy bringing small insects, worms and pieces of fruit back to the nest. The next several weeks are critical in their chicks’ survival. They are quite defenseless. At this stage, fortunately, the babies are silent. This may help them avoid being noticed by predators.

One Day Old Chicks Sleeping

"Feed Me" 

May 12: Mother and father are very active, flying back and forth, "bringing home the bacon."

 Why did the mother pick this spot to build her nest? Most mockingbirds will build five or six trial nests and then pick one in which to lay her eggs. So she obviously preferred this location, right next to my garage. Mockingbirds are very intelligent. In a study, they were shown to recognize humans who had been around and were non-threatening.  So, perhaps she considered me and my house as her protector, like a feudal lord and his castle. The larger predators (hawks, owls, raccoons, etc) don’t normally venture close to people. So, for now, the chicks are safe.

May 15: At five days, the four chicks appear to be healthy and growing. Their eyes are closed, and they are covered with blue-grey fuzz which will be replaced by feathers soon. They are still silent.

A critical time will occur just before they leave the nest, when they still can’t fly. An intruder (like me) or sudden scare could cause them to fall from the nest and be susceptible to a variety of misfortunes. I’ve noticed the mother always leaves the nest when I get within about 10 feet. The chicks will likely try to follow at some point. So I intend to abandon my close up shots of the nest when they get close to flying.  If one should fall out and be unable to fly, I will consider putting in back in, even though this might scare the others into jumping the ship.

 

5 Days Old

May 17: This morning I heard the first little cries from the nest. Small muffled peeps are coming from one or more of the chicks.

May 19:  At 9 days old, the 4 chicks are vey active. Their eyes are open and they are growing feathers. Mother and father are working very hard.

9 Days Old

 

May 21: Sadly, this will be my last update to this post. The nest was empty this morning. I looked all over the yard and under the nearby bushes for any sign of the chicks, but to no avail.

Day 11-Empty Nest

Yesterday afternoon and into the evening we had severe thundershowers, over two inches of rain and wind gusts to 50 mph. I suspect the chicks and possibly the mother became unnerved by this new and strange disturbance. They must have either fled or fallen from the nest. But at 11 days, the chicks were not yet ready to fly. Any number of air borne or ground predators could then easily have found and eaten them.

Later in the morning, I saw the mother and father in the side yard flitting about. She swooped to the ground and appeared to be picking up a small insect. But no, she was picking up a dry twig! She flew to a small oak tree in my neighbor’s yard. This amazing creature was building another nest! No time for remorse…just the pure survival instinct powering her to start over and try again. With a life span of 8 years in wild, this mockingbird will definitely have many more opportunities to successfully raise a brood or two.

With what I have learned from this chronicle, I must now rank Mockingbirds high on my list of respected and admired birds. Correction, I must now rank Mockingbirds high on my list of respected and admired species.