I have a decorative amphora in the garden held vertically on a stand. I was surprised to find that we have blue tits nesting in it and from the racket they make when mum turns up it is is a full brood. I'm just a little concerned though about how they can get out when fully fledged. There is no way to climb out as it is too deep and indeed it is beyond vertical. The adult birds clearly have no problems flying vertically out but will the kids be able to manage it as their first flight? It looks like this basically and is about 2 foot tall. www.britishmuseum.org/.../1613330300
Had a similar enquiry yesterday and my answer is here ...
RE: Can fledglings fly upwards to
2013 photos & vids here
eff37 on Flickr
Thanks for the info, hopefully they'll make it!
Do let us know if these youngsters manage to fledge successfully, luckily there is only one brood per year
The amphora fell over when we checked it yesterday ending up at 45 degrees with the hole against a wall. Still noises from inside and parents feeding. Today nothing - I took a peak inside and no chicks but no evidence of disturbance or bodies. I hope this means they have fledged and made it out but on the other hand maybe the thing fell over because a predator had a go. We've seen a few adults in the hedge adjacent, we'll try and keep an eye out to see if they are still carrying food when they come and go.
Thanks for the update ... was it quite a lightweight vessel, wouldn't have thought the weight of fledglings caused it to tip, certainly hope not predated ... do keep a watch for fledglings in the hedge!
Pretty heavy I'd have said, and was quite surprised anything would have tipped it over - If you'd have asked before it happened could something in nature tip it over then maybe an assertive cat (although not obviously explaining the disappearance as it is too deep and narrow for any such cat to reach the nest, and where it ended up if anything would have made it harder to reach) having said that, it's quite a tall and thin item on a metal tripod on gravel - how close to being unbalanced it was I don't know and if pretty close then perhaps a corvid or rat could have unbalanced it, or even the birds themselves - clearly the heavier the more likely..
Do you have foxes in your garden?
Can't rule it out, I've seen them wandering around the neighbourhood. On the other hand we had our hedgehog camera running for around 4 months late last year and only saw hedgehogs, birds, and cats.
I can imagine a curious cat trying to reach up to the top and toppling it over! Are you intending to cover the hole to prevent nesting happening again next year?