Great tit versus wasp!

All this happened while the great tit was checking the bird box (see previous post), but I compiled this story into a separate video.

9 April 2012 10:00am

Great tit evaluates the box!

Just three hours after the blue tit threw an “invader” out of “his” box, he is faced with a much bigger threat. A great tit is now showing a serious interest in this potential nest site!

A pair of great tits arrived and the female entered the box. She was doing all the expected stuff like pecking the floor, pecking the walls and pecking around the entrance as well as performing these typical “wriggles” with the wings spread out.

While all this was happening, I saw the blue tit who probably thought he already owned the box flying around nervously, sitting on the roof of the box and peeking inside occasionally. However, he didn’t dare to take on the great tit inside the box.

9 April 2012, 10:00-12:00am

On another subject, I’m still wondering what this posture means. Apparently it is some kind of display because it is always aimed at the opening of the box where the male bird is.

Around 1:29 in the video you can see this posture

Later in the day when the great tit had left there was again a visit of a couple of blue tits that was obviously checking out nest sites. And while I write this (in de evening), a bird is spending the night in the box. Not sure what it is (it’s outside the view of the camera) but I can hear it through the microphone. I suspect it’s a blue tit because a great tit makes more noise when entering, since it hardly fits through the opening! 

So who will take the box (if anyone) is still undecided I guess…

Attack!

Recently I have noticed that one specific bird is always singing in a nearby tree and checks the bird box many times every day. So this bird has apparently claimed the territory. It is the same bird that successfully defended the bird box in the previous post.

Today I captured this video of a fight in the box. A bird enters, then a few seconds later the bird that apparently owns this territory enters the box, fights the intruder and wins.

9 April 2012, 7:16am

See the attacked bird changing his posture just before the attack. 

9 April 2012, 7:16am

Btw, I have also noticed that recently a bird spends the nights in the birdbox again. Unfortunately this happens outside the view of the camera (probably perched on the wire leading to the camera, close to the ceiling) but I can hear it through the microphone. However, I think the bird that I saw flying into the box around sunset was not today's defender of the box.

Bird defending his territory (and birdbox)

Interesting things happening in my birdbox this morning! One bird (Bird1) visits the box and calls his/her partner. Another bird (Bird2) enters the box to inspect it. Bird1 flies out again. A few moments later an angry male (Bird3) enters and chases Bird2 out of the box within a fraction of a second!

7 April 2012, 7:56am

You can clearly see how bird3 makes himself look big and impressive by spreading his wings slightly, raising his blue crown feathers and fanning his tail.

7 April 2012, 7;56am

As I ‘m writing this, I see this same bird checking the bird box now every ~15 minutes or so. Every time he just peeks through the opening for a second without entering and then flies off again. I’ve also seen him singing high in a nearby tree. It looks like he now owns this territory and this birdbox.

I’m sure I’ve seen this bird in and around the box many times, but it is often difficult to tell them apart.

No lack of visits today!

Blue tits are now clearly looking for nest sites. As I write this at 12:30, the birdbox has already been visited several times today by what I think are different pairs and single birds. I have also seen the “wriggle” with spread out wings a number of times today.

Here is another video of one bird calling another bird into the box:

4 April 2012, 10:40am

Later on there was a pair around the box with a male that was showing off, making himself look big by spreading his wings slightly and fanning his tail while outside the box. In the video you can see him flying in, calling (his girlfriend?) and then perching in the opening of the box, making himself look impressive again. I’m pretty sure this is the same bird that has visited the box many times before.

4 April 2012, 11:14am

Bird calling another bird into the box

One pair visited this morning. The first bird calls the second into the box.

4 April 2012 8:00am

Female evaluates the bird box

There have been a few relatively quiet days in the birdbox recently and that makes me worry a bit since the time for blue tits to start building a nest starts around now. Something should happen within the next two weeks or so….

Anyway, today there were several visits to the box and one of the visits was a female that was clearly looking for a nest site. While still outside the box she looked very fluffy with her down feathers puffed up. I read somewhere that this is typical female behaviour during breeding time.

While in the box she made the typical female wriggle moves with her wings spread out and she was occasionally pecking the bottom of the box, a thing the females do to test the wood of a potential nest site. There was no male around at that moment.

By the way, these recordings have sound! I can only do that if I start the recording manually and do the video compression manually otherwise the sound goes completely out of sync. So it’s a lot of work, but very nice to have if there are going to be babies later on…

3 April 2012, 13:49

3 April 2012, 13:49