Topiary Dove

by Kim Hegna (Fresno CA)

A few Sunday’s ago my Husband noticed a sparse twig nest in the urn of our topiary. In that nest we found a single egg.Coincidentally, just the day before, I had noticed, in the corner of our yard, what appeared to be the remains of a bird, that had obviously become prey to one of the many cats that roam our neighborhood.

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Dove Nesting In Our Topiary Planter

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I know very little about birds but do know morning doves are monogamous.As such, immediately realized we likely had a sole mother-bird in our topiary attempting to care for & raise her young.I went on line and learned this was possible to do, but a long shot. I shared the information with my husband, and we set about doing the best we could to improve the odds of her success. We camouflaged her nest by adding chicken wire to the topiary, then draping branches & leaves over the wire mesh.This made her nest much less conspicuous to predators. We then realized she would be doing “double duty” as a single parent.So after the hatching of the 1st egg, (we believe Saturday) we began to “spoon-in” bird seed with a long handled wooden spoon.By standing as far away from the Urn, as possible we were able to deposit some seed, near the nest. I am unsure as to whether this tactic has helped, since we just began this effort today. Its noteworthy to add, that she seems to now realize we are attempting to help.She does not fly from the nest, even when we are within inches.It is interesting, that indeed 1 egg has hatched, as of yesterday (our 3rd Sunday since discovering the situation) and can only presume the 2nd will hatch shortly if not already. Since we are certain her mate has been killed, we have noticed another Dove who is staying in our yard and appears to be somewhat of a “look out” for our mother Dove.Sometimes acting as a decoy when scrub Jays or other predators arrive. This 2nd Dove is always nearby & when another bird approaches the yard- will swoop out and cause the offending bird to move on. Since we are not versed in Dove behavior, we are uncertain as to whether this is a male, who has decided to “adopt or foster” our lone female and her new family.Your article reiterated what I had read previously, and that is that her success in this endeavor is a long shot at best. Regardless, my Husband & I are committed to helping her in any way that might better her odds. Please keep a positive thought out there for Us and Her!

Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHY