Pigeon Post

 A couple of weeks ago, I posted about the wood pigeon's nest in our wisteria. A few days ago, on the 10th August (Photo 1), the pigeon was still sitting on the nest with no sign of progeny. It had been 19 days since we first spotted the brooding hen.

Photo 1: Wood Pigeon on Nest (10th August 2024)

A quick internet check indicated an incubation period of about 17 days so we had some concerns about the viability of the nest. However, the very next day, a little bundle of feathers appeared next to the parent bird (Photo 2).

Photo 2: Parent and young wood pigeon (11th August 2024)

Using my FLIR One Pro infrared camera, I wanted to see if it could detect any other warm bodies in the nest (Photo 3). Unfortunately, the picture resolution was insufficient to detect one or two smaller bodies against the parent.

Photo 3: Infrared photo taken with FLIR One Pro (11th August)

Wood pigeons, like most doves, typically lay a clutch of two eggs and both parents share the incubation duties; predictably, the female does ⅔rd of the brooding.

One day later, there did seem to be two extra bodies in the nest (Photo 4) though not with any great confidence.

Photo 4: Infrared photo taken with FLIR One Pro (12th August)

However, today I could clearly see there were two youngsters in the nest.

Photo 5: The Two New Arrivals I

Photo 6: The Two New Arrivals II

Photo 7: The Two New Arrivals III

The only worries now (as we provide plenty of bird food) are the neighbourhood's cats, the local magpie population (took a young blackbird a few years ago), and the very occasional sparrowhawk (Video 1).

Video 1: Wood Pigeon for Dinner