Tbeanz Garden Visitors
Photography by T J Smith
A Wren Story
We have always had wrens in the garden, lovely to see and hear but hard to get a good picture of as they hunt for bugs around pots and dart under furniture and into rubbish piles. This year we had the most amazing experience with a pair in our garden.
After watching these birds closely trying to get pictures I was able to tell the difference between the male and female, the male having a much darker underside.
In our garden is our old shed which was another project we intended to tackle in March/April this year during our lockdown holiday. The shed is missing part of its roof, the windows all have gaps under them and the door window pane has half of it missing. It seriously needs clearing out and taking down so we can replace it with something usable.
While on one of my days off in March taking pictures I watched the male wren going into the shed - 'ah' I thought 'bug hunting must be good in there very smart!' after several days of this I suddenly realised he was taking things into the shed not bringing them out! I reached for my laptop and did some research.
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I was surprised to read about the wrens and their nesting habits, apparently, the male wren will make 3 or 4 nests to present to the female who will then line the nest she chooses with feathers. So it seemed one of the nest sites chosen by our male wren was inside the shed, I tried to figure out where he was building it without disturbing him but just couldn't spot it in there amongst everything stacked up. I pointed out to my husband what I thought was going on and we continued to watch for the next two weeks with the male going in and out with nesting materials. 'What are the chances she will choose this nest over the others' I wondered.
Then the displays started, he would sing from all over the garden, trying to entice his lady to look at the wonderful job he thought he had done with the nest in the shed! I shot a short video of his display which you can see here.
This went on for several days until one day I saw them both go into the shed, she spent a day or so making up her mind after which I watched her taking things in for the nest.
Well needless to say the plans for the shed then went on hold and we made sure not to go in there, made the door was securely blocked shut so the prowling neighbour's cat couldn't get in that way, watched and waited. She continued to hunt for food in the garden and return to the shed then suddenly there was no sign of either of them for over a week. I thought maybe they had moved on or been disturbed by the other birds being fed in the garden. Over the following week I watched very carefully and listened out for them and one day I spotted her in the shed again, going back up to the place where I thought the nest may be. The next two or more weeks were constant visits but I only saw the female but she was always carrying food.
By the beginning of June she was travelling less and hunting closer to the shed, I timed her visits to one every 2 minutes on one day! From dawn till dusk she was busy feeding her young in the shed, we never heard a sound and still couldn't see the nest through any of the windows so had no idea how many could be in there.
I knew then that we definitely had young and I also knew how unlikely it was for me to ever see them ( I was out of action for a few days from 3rd June), however, I was able to sit in the garden and watch her after a few days of rest. Having observed her for so long I knew something was setting her on edge on the 7th June she was getting very wary of the Magpies when they came to feed and would not fly near the shed when they were around even going to the nearby tree and singing loudly to get their attention on her, giving alarm calls to her young in the shed.
At about 4 PM that day I spotted a face at the window of the shed, but I knew the female was in the garden so could it be?
a few minutes later 2 faces at the window and the sound of young birds chirping. We were both sat out on the furniture quite close to the shed at the time and I pointed out the faces at the window, I think I spotted one fledgling coming out of the hole in the roof and 3 more at the window, it took them a little while to find the gap in the window but one by one they emerged. The last one took its time and mum was frantically calling to try and get the others safely hidden. The last one finally made it out, flew over and landed right between us on the back of the chair, chirping merrily, we sat very still - it felt like they were thanking us for helping to keep them safe and giving them a place to hatch. Then they were off.
18th June
Although we haven't seen the young wrens again, the parents still visit the garden to hunt, bathe or just to sing in the trees, I am so thankful to have been able to watch this family grow, and it gave me a real boost when I needed it most.