Family #4 this year.
As some of you know already we have a couple of bread baskets hanging high up in the back of our house and Mourning doves are having their families there for about five years now.
We have about 5-7 families every year.
It is nice, protected place that a skunks or cats can’t reach.
We know well those nice birds by now. We know their routine.
We noticed that the father bird was not coming to do his part of “hatching” so the mother would be able to go fly away for 5 to 10 minutes to eat and stretch. We saw the mom some times leaving her babies behind by them self’s.
That is not normal at this early stage, but the dad was gone….
This morning I found out that the mother is not in the nest and both babies are dead there.
One is with his lying face down and the smaller one looks as if he is just sleeping with his head up and eyes closed.
I didn’t feel like taking photos….
We are so used to those lovely birds. We enjoy very much to see them around. In all those years we had a couple of incidents where a skunk would eat their eggs (the basket was under the balcony) or one of the babies was not well and fell or was pushed out of the nest but we never lost a parent and both babies.
Tonight, after I get back from work I will need to get up there to change the basket (we have couple of spare ones hanging in the garage) and bury those babies.
Sad day it is today in our backyard…..

Oh how sad! Life is really precious when you come to appreciate it! danrav · 2011-07-28: 22:41

That is very sad Hans. I feel very badly for you and I loved your photos of the birds. I hope that more will come. (((((Hans))))) liveandletlive · 2011-07-28: 22:42

Great extreme close focus. So sad event too. Thanks for sharing and wArm rEgArds! davidcardona · 2011-07-28: 22:46

It is really very unhappy ending to those Lovely Birds, very sad~!~ mallusatish · 2011-07-28: 22:48

Mourning Doves are some of my favortite birds of all. I love their songs. That's very sad. I hope more come soon. Nice photo! unblinkingeye · 2011-07-28: 22:52

what can i say just that nice shor lmxg2011 · 2011-07-28: 23:02

I can see just by your shots how attached you are to your birds. Such a sad story. Sorry. Keryl · 2011-07-28: 23:57

I can see how you'd get attached. thanks for sharing their story and love the picture of them in the nest. she has such pretty eyes. beth0110 · 2011-07-29: 00:00

Sad, as we have gotten to know the birds in your yard. Poor babies! beeacooker · 2011-07-29: 00:07

:( IShuttertoThink · 2011-07-29: 01:36

It is a sad day for us too, we have got to know those birds through your pictures... Annbramwell · 2011-07-29: 03:34

Wow! Incredible ,beautiful and touching! loulou169 · 2011-07-29: 06:15

:) sad report but nice shot! akata · 2011-07-29: 07:46

I guess it is part of nature...not much we can do about it. I feel sad for the mom. LisaMarieGeorge · 2011-07-29: 09:21

yes a sad day for sure.....nice closeup though !! MARETKA88 · 2011-07-29: 12:19

pretty shot but sad that the babies didn't survive. Lynda · 2011-07-29: 13:26

Oh dear, that is sad indeed... McMommy · 2011-08-01: 00:05

Nice shot, pity about the sad end pcmcgarry · 2011-08-01: 10:45

Such a sad post. Hopefully some of the young from other generations might come and take up the nest next year. SADHYA · 2011-08-01: 10:59

Tagged: birds nature garden