Baby Birds

Last week Charlie noticed a nest in a tall bush in the far corner of the back yard. A female Cardinal was sitting in it. When she was gone the little tweets coming from the nest were a sure sign of life. We left it alone for a few days, but curiosity got the best of us. We each went out, stood on the trampoline and tried to spot the baby bird in the shadows. (Seeing a 9 month-pregnant woman clambering onto a trampoline is another story entirely!) Over the next few days the squawking noises from the nest were loud enough to hear from the house and Charlie kept an eye on the nest. We were so dismayed when at the end of the week the nest was empty. I thought our attention had scared the parents to do something extreme, but hubby looked around for baby birdy bodies on the ground and found nothing. The next day I was washing dishes and looked up to see the male Cardinal feeding a fledgling. Kaity came quickly to my calls and we watched the baby preen his new feathers.
I was glad our attention didn't lead to his demise! When I tried to sneak up on him and take his picture, he flew away, but I can still hear his loud, demanding cries. We looked it up and read that the parents feed the babies even after they leave the nest.
The cries of the baby are loud and obnoxious! I'm thinking ahead to the moments when an infant's demanding cries are going to be vying for our attention as well...