NEST ON RENT

NEST ON RENT

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

08/VII/2024

The Sunbirds are in action again. It could be the rains which have brought about some fresh josh in them. Now they come in groups to enjoy goodies in the Ellis’ Garden.

What caught our attention was their visits to their old nest which they built in April this year. In May, their chicks flew away. One didn’t know why they were returning to the place where Blackie & Brownie had raised Jinny & Johnny.

Could they be missing their old home? Were they about to raise more chicks?

The pair would make a short halt for a ‘dekho’ for danger. On confirming all clear, one by one they would visit the nest, gripping loose hanging twigs of grass. Once in a while, they would enter the nest and sit for a while. This was a bit unusual or could there be more than what meets the eye.

As I stood in the veranda to observe what these birds were up to, it appeared that Brownie could be hatching another clutch of eggs, I was not sure.

In a blink of an eye, Brownie whizzed past me carrying something in her mouth. It looked like a grass strand. Was she taking grass away from their nest? Generally, it is the other way around. They bring grass, feathers, & silky threads to build the nest and make it comfy. This activity appeared a bit unusual.

A little later the couple returned. A short hover before they caught hold of the nest in their claws. Then they would grab strands. Were they weaving or de-weaving it? The bird moved all around the nest on hover. Was it looking for something? Were they refabricating the nest?

Then what I observed was something I had never seen. This girl would find one end of a grass strand. While moving around the nest, loosen the nest with its beak, while on the hover, to untie the grass. After a few attempts, it would pull out that strand and fly away with it.

They were breaking their own nest. What could be the reason for doing so? Were they building a new nest somewhere else and utilizing old strands and threads? Were they recycling material from their old nest? Or, were they now slowly dismantling the old one to build a new one at the same place? I don’t know. Such questions kept churning in my mind.

The nest was a beautiful piece of art, it is now just a shell. The outer cover has been removed and probably as they remove various more strands, it might get disbalanced and fall off from where it is stuck between the fairy light wires. In my heart of hearts, I did not want the nest to go.

It appeared that these birds did not fear us. A thought passed my mind that they were removing all weak links of the nest and replacing them with stronger and tougher strands of grass and threads.

Could it be that Blackie & Brownie had given their nest on rent? The new couple were now doing modifications and repairs to their newly rented home as per their requirements like we humans do. A bit of polish, a coat of paint, some scrubbing and cleaning, some repair and plastering etc. They too were on the job.

Whatever they are doing, I wish them luck. If they stay around our home, we would be more than happy. Will they return to raise a new family? I wonder!!!!!!

JAI HIND

Comments

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