by Brian
In this weeks comic, Jolee has highlighted how birds can choose the most improbable places to place their nest.
As we settled into our apartment after our move, we planned to get a lot of use out of our balcony. In our excitement to enjoy our outdoor time, we purchased new chairs, a small table, outdoor carpet, and curtains to provide shade. Unfortunately, we soon realized that there were tenants already occupying our outdoor retreat. They were squatters, two doves with a nest of eggs, who made it clear that we were not welcome on our balcony no matter whose name was on the lease.
As a housewarming gift, we had let Dylan and Jolee select a glider for their outdoor space. Jolee was so excited to put it together and set up the patio to be a great place to relax and draw. It turns out that Dylan and Jolee had their own residents on their patio who, like our doves, were leaving messes on their outdoor space. Ironically, this did not bother them as much as the loud chirping in the morning that woke them up quite early. We did need to teach them to be aware of possible diseases from bird feces and how to carefully clean before using the space.
Ironically as a kid, I really liked birds. I had a parakeet as a pet and a few books to help me identify birds of the Midwest (favorite being the red-wing black bird). As I got older, I determined that I was not a birdie. These birds on our balconies were very angry with us and would dive bomb if we even looked in their direction. When we called the apartment’s main office to lodge a complaint, we were informed that they could only help if there were no eggs in the nest. It was clear that there were eggs, thus the hostility toward us.
We spent the remainder of the summer inside, waiting out their expanding bird family to grow up and exit the nest. Once the baby birds were grown, we were allowed to remove the nest and install spikes in hopes of preventing their future return the following year. With the weather warming and summer approaching, the birds are back and trying to maneuver around the spikes to rebuild a new nest. It keeps surprising me how birds will try to live in the most unlikely locations. We have tried to reclaim our balcony by spending significant time outside and keeping the area clear before any nests can be completed or eggs laid. It will be a competition of man vs. bird. Stay tuned to determine who will win this round.