I came home from grocery shopping the other week, I plonked my shopping basket on the kitchen table and MG shouted from the terrace "be careful of the eggs" I looked at the kitchen table and saw two perfect, off white, smooth, opaque and still warm perfect little eggs, Dove eggs to be precise, only narrowly missed from being splattered by my shopping basket.
Spring is well and truly here in the Pyrenees and our resident Ring Collared Doves have been busy. That is until MG wielded his chainsaw and lopped a few branches off a giant Bay tree, a squawking, very cross Dove flew out and a nest dropped into MG's hands with the two eggs inside. We tried to save the eggs, I made a new nest, out of a cardboard box, packing material and cotton wool, placed them on a bookshelf and directed the office desk lamp onto them... to no avail I am afraid.
After this our Doves have once again been very busy flying about with twigs, they have now made a new nest, that just happens to be in the Neflier tree, which shades the terrace and is overlooked by our balcony, (I think they have figured, those stupid humans ain't going to be messing with this tree) they have laid new eggs and are now in the process of incubating them, they even let me peer into the tree and let me photograph the process, under the circumstances I think they have been very forgiving, I will keep you posted of all new developments...
Our Collared Doves build on the flimsiest of structures and one year managed succesfully to raise a chick on the metal bars that secured the satellite dish to the house. I think that chick must have gone on to be a high wire artist.
ReplyDeleteOooh, they are so beautiful! My Sister has doves that build there nests each year on her patio--in close proximity to my Sister's pit bull mix! :0
ReplyDeletePhew, what a relief to hear that the new nest is up and running :) Charming post !
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