On Saturday, we discovered a nest hiding in a hanging pot of pansies on the front porch. Two tiny eggs were nestled inside.Today...there are five! Look at that big guy...who does that one belong to? Any bird experts out there. We are still trying to identify the mama of the little ones.
The big one looks like a cardinal egg. See http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Northern_Cardinal_dtl.html
ReplyDeleteOr a house sparrow?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/House_Sparrow_dtl.html
No, no, no. . . I think the big one is a cowbird egg! I knew that there was a "parasitic" bird that laid its eggs in other birds' nests but couldn't remember the name.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Chipping_Sparrow_dtl.html
The Brown-headed Cowbird is the only brood parasite common across North America. A female cowbird makes no nest of her own, but instead lays her eggs in the nests of other bird species, who then raise the young cowbirds.
The Brown-headed Cowbird lays eggs in the nests of many different species of birds. Recent genetic analyses have shown that some female cowbirds will use a number of different hosts, but most females specialize on one particular host species.
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Brown-headed_Cowbird.html