Seems to have left us I'm afraid, hasn't come into the garden now for over a week, and a dead blackbird is at end of road having been runover. Very sad as he had been coming into garden as a few of you know for the last five years. Last photos here with his young on the 11.6.15 We haven't seen the young either and think that maybe they wouldn't have managed by themselves, too young.
So not to get too maudlin here's a few of Mrs Beaky, and we now have about three male blackbirds trying to take over Beaky's patch,
so as they say..... life goes on
I'm sure she will attract another one of these males and one day another brood might appear.
Lot to learn
That's sad news. However, the young Blackbirds that I have been watching in the College car parks are about the same age and are foraging for themselves in between snacks being brought in by the parents. Once they are out in the open they seem to feed themselves. I'm sure they are out there somewhere and are doing fine. I have noticed the adult female now chases her offspring away, so let's hope yours are now independent too.
Unicum arbustum haud alit duos erithacos
(One bush does not shelter two Robins)
Zenodotus (3rd Century B.C.)
Thanks MC, I've got my fingers crossed for those two youngsters, as you say the female seems to pass the young on to the male not long after fledging, and then goes on to brood another set of eggs, at least that is what happened a couple of years ago when they had four broods on the go back and fore the garden.
Sorry to hear this Gaynor. As MC says, the youngsters are perhaps more resilient than we would think. I'm sure that they'll be fine and should be able to look after themselves.
Paul
My bird photos HERE
Thanks Paul, the garden doesn't seem to same somehow without Beaky to feed, but hey five years is a pretty long time for one bird to be around I suppose, and the other males that are now trying to visit may be his from a previous brood last year, none of them have his beak tho.!!