Comments on: A Lesson Learned

By: Kate St. John

Kate St. John — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:33:52 +0000

I haven’t seen Budgie for about two weeks. I hadn’t put it together until a day or two ago but a Coopers Hawk began to frequent my neighborhood about two weeks ago. It flies in every morning from the opposite hill, arriving about an hour after dawn. From the way it flies I believe this hawk has a nest about a mile from my house. Hmmm.

By: Patsy

Patsy — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:05:07 +0000

Kate was just scrolling through the blogs and came across the one regarding the Budgie. Have you seen it lately?

By: gloria

gloria — Thu, 28 May 2009 19:02:22 +0000

I put out “wild bird seed” all year long… for the inhabitants of my neighborhood…. usually very early in the morning …. as I walk my dogs every day at 5am… but the resident birds know the drill and the seed is always gone (or near gone) by the time I leave for work.

By: Kate St. John

Kate St. John — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:59:01 +0000

I don’t know – but I can tell you that in general birds survive the winter if they have enough to eat. (I wrote about this in January 2008: http://www.wqed.org/birdblog/2008/01/04/coping-with-cold-food/)
I believe Budgie’s bigger threat is predators.

By: gloria

gloria — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:52:51 +0000

Kate: What will happen to her/him when the winter weather comes back to Pittsburgh? Will she be able to survive?

By: Kate St. John

Kate St. John — Thu, 28 May 2009 01:32:04 +0000

Budgie update, Wed evening:
Budgie has gotten over her fear of my yard. When I got home she was chirping from my front yard tree because two house sparrows and starlings were eating a hot dog on the street. She checked it out but wouldn’t eat it.
Around 7:30pm she dozed on the backyard feeder perch and kept sleeping even when the house sparrows came to feed. The house sparrows got into a fight, she woke up, preened and ate. She left at nightfall. Perhaps she roosts with the house sparrows.

By: Kate St. John

Kate St. John — Wed, 27 May 2009 17:10:53 +0000

Budgie update, Wed morning at dawn:
I didn’t see Budgie for more than 24 hours after she was trapped in the cage. I’m not surprised she stayed away for a while. This morning at dawn she came to the feeder – the good old feeder – with a flock of house sparrows. After she ate she left for who knows where.

By: J

Tue, 26 May 2009 18:25:08 +0000

I thinking maybe a lot of the white down was already very loose and just got brushed off while they were being checked over and banded. It seems like they have a lot less white than they did even yesterday. And like Pandi said, judging by the Budgies reaction to being caged, it sounds like she may have been out longer than previously thought.

By: Stephen

Stephen — Tue, 26 May 2009 17:46:55 +0000

The chicks are there, all four it seems, but I haven’t seen the parents at all yet today, and the nest is still very clean. Just a bad hunting day, I hope? And incidentally, it is amazing how much they’ve grown in three days. The 15 second cam (which is where I get the images to my Google page) went down a few days ago. I left four white puffballs last week, to be greeted by four brownish birds after the holiday weekend…

By: Pandi

Pandi — Tue, 26 May 2009 16:52:34 +0000

Wow. That choked me up. Maybe Budgie has been living outside for a while and just happened upon your yard and liked it? She might have been someone’s pet once, but maybe she’s been outside longer than her behavior indicates. She’s a lucky bird, not only because she has survived outside, but also because she chanced upon someone who understood her. Please post about her when next you see her–she’s got a little fan club going here!