I don't know what it is about phoebes that endears them to us. Perhaps it's their quiet grace as flycatchers; perhaps it's their approachability; perhaps it's their attentiveness to their young and their nests. At least so I thought until Bob Sargent set me straight on the latter point. In any case, we have enjoyed watching a pair of phoebes raise two broods on our back porch this summer, five in the first litter, four in the second. After the first brood, I took down the nest and cleaned around it, only to watch them return in a few days and construct a new nest on the same beam above a light on our covered back porch. As for the baby bird out of the nest to which Bob responded so informatively, a few minutes after I sent the message last night I noted that it had made its way across the porch to the very edge, with a ten-foot fall to concrete below. It appeared to be ready to leap when I decided to grab it, as gently as I could--too gently, it seems, for he wriggled loose and fell to his death on the rocks below. When I checked on their offspring, the parent birds scolded me mercilessly and deservedly, making me feel even worse than I did about the matter. Today, they've returned to their duties with the remaining chicks and life goes on. Minus one. Ed Gleaves Nashville, TN =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to sign your messages with first and last name, city (town) and state abbreviation. ----------------------------------------------------- To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ----------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * TN-Bird Net Owner: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx (423) 764-3958 =========================================================