Pigeon Pandemonium

With the recent winds and rains fast ripping the leaves off my Sycamores, I noticed a nest about 20 feet up that I hadn't seen before.

It wasn't there this spring, so had clearly been built this year, and I wondered if some young birds had been produced in the garden right under my nose without me realising.

So imagine my surprise when a little head popped up.

It was a young Wood Pigeon, with its dark bill, dark eye, no white flash on the neck, and rather chestnutty underparts.

Now Wood Pigeon 'squabs' (as the chicks are known) are in the next for about 4-5 weeks, so these only hatched in late September. And incubation is about 17 days, so these were laid maybe the first week of September, all quite usual for a species that can continue laying into October or beyond  

As I watched, there was a bit of Pigeon Pandemonium as one of the parents came in (you can see it on the right, showing the yellow iris and bill). Lo and behold, up popped Squab Number 2.

It just shows that, when you think you know your garden wildlife inside out, it can still conceal some pretty major surprises.