Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Cheep-per... again

I heard one of my all-time favorite noises in the bird room today when I went to feed the feathered kids... the "chip-chip-chip-chip-chip" sound of a baby bird being parent fed (... and there they go again). I had just about given up hope on this last batch of eggs. I will let you imagine the contortions it took to get a picture of my own hand, that wasn't blurry, while holding a day old chick in such a way that it was not simply a puffy yellow blob.
I can't tell if they other eggs are going to make it (I pulled out 3 I am sure are bad). I think I heard one tapping on the inside of the shell. They tap and "pip" to talk to the parents the day or so before they hatch. In the topmost photo, you can just barely see the little white egg tooth at the tip of the beak.
Like all the babies, it is a wonder of delicacy and miniaturization. Every tiny scale of the feet can be seen, each perfect toenail, the line for the eye slit, and even a tiny dark spot where the crest will be. Yellow fluff means another "normal" colored bird (as opposed to whiteface); I will have to wait another generation to see if any of the babies have a recessive whiteface gene.
It rained during the night and on & off during the day (trying to drench me when I went to put gas in the car, of course) which is a nice change from dry and sunny. When I left work the clouds were mostly broken up and there was a shockingly bright full moon that stopped me in my tracks. It was amazing, and lit up the clouds around it with a lovely blue glow. This birdy will be named "Luna" if she is a hen ... no idea what the male equivalent would be. I will turn it over in my mind.

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