For a while now the big girls have been roosting on the high perch above the storage cabinet at dusk, until I go and lift them down and put them in the coop. For the last week the little girls have taken to roosting on my little chair which hangs just below the top of the run and opposite the high perch. They obviously want to roost as near to the big girls as they can get.
The little girls on my chair
The big girls on the high perch
The little girls turn to face me
They look so sweet on here although I wouldn’t think it’s that comfortable as the chair is smooth and slopes down slightly.
I pick up the nearest little girl and put her in while the other one flies down. I then lift down the three big girls and put them in. Then I lay my torch on the ground to light the coop door and the second banty follows it and goes in and I close the door. I have been doing this every evening recently and it is a quick and easy way to get them all in.
The other thing that has changed in their bedtime routine is that the little girls now sleep on the perch with the big girls or on the floor in front of the perch instead of in the nest box. They have definitely grown in confidence and want to be around the big girls.
The other change to routine yesterday was that Bluebell laid her egg in the little coop instead of the nest box. I have no idea why she chose to do this. They are funny girls.
I have also identified the feather that I found below the bird feeder.
Spotty feather
I looked at owl feathers and other birds of prey and there were several birds with spotted feathers but when I put “greater spotted woodpecker feather” into google I got a photo of a feather that matched mine exactly. It had the same number of spots in the same place and was identical in every way to my feather. As we have greater spotted woodpeckers visiting the feeders in our garden this makes sense. Another mystery solved!
Click here to see the history of my flock.
DEFINITELY a woodpecker feather. I love birds and I’m an active Audubon member and while I couldn’t tell you what kind of woodpecker, it’s definitely a woodpecker.
It took me a bit of research to be sure of it but given that the greater spotted woodpecker has visited our feeders for the last four years or so, I can be pretty sure of it. We have woodland behind our garden and every year at this time we hear them call and see the young ones on the suet feeder. I have just never picked up a feather before.
Today I picked up a blue tit feather, it’s the tiniest, slimmest blue feather. I must say it makes a change from picking up chicken feathers!
I am a member of the R.S.P.B. which is probably the equivalent of your Audubon, maybe? It stands for: Royal Society of Protection of Birds. Anyway if you love chickens you probably love all birds!