On Wednesday mornings I volunteer at the Salem AudubonNature Reserve in West Salem. I always
show up early to be able to walk the trails to get a count on the birds before
everybody arrives to work. Today I
spotted this tiny Pacific Wren plucking moss presumably for nest
construction. Unfortunately the Pacific Wren is not a candidate for the artificial cavities we have been
constructing, but prefers to build a nest low to the ground in thick brush. As
a side note, we finished erecting our logs with our nesting cavities today,
bringing the total to ten units available. Now all we need are some serious
renters.
Great detail in this photo! And the subject is a cutie as well.
ReplyDeleteEver the scientist, Jim this morning numbered our newly installed snags modified with his ingeniously built-by-hand nesting cavities, measured the distance between the holes and the ground, noted the facing-direction of the entries, used a mirror to glimpse inside the cavities for signs of nesting activity, and recorded all of this and other pertinent information. He did much of this from his small stepladder. We will see what kind conclusions he draws from his data mining. Besides his scientific monitoring, his next assignment is to shingle over the bases of these snags to cover the heavy plastic bagging that was used to encapsulate the entire underground trunks for rot protection. Any bagging above the shingling will be trimmed and removed for aesthetic purposes. The shingles will come from sheets cut from re-purposed beverage cans. The shingling will then be painted to match the color of the snags. Jim's day is far from over. Lee
ReplyDeleteThanks coach.
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