I don't know where to post this - lost hummingbird babies

[montana ducks]

4 weeks ago I found a hummingbird nest in our back yard, just 12 feet or so from our door. It was one of the happiest days of my life, as silly as that sounds. I've got a great life, it's just I really love birds.


So I started watching over the mother and her babies. We had electricians sent over by our landlord and I made **** sure everyone knew not to disturb our nest.

I was so happy when they hatched, I setup a mobile viewing station (read I dragged pallets over every once in a while) to get a look at them, etc.

This morning I went outside and the nest was empty and I got a sad/happy feeling that the babies had flown away.

Then I looked down.

1 dead, the other had a bloody beak and hornets were crawling on it.

We looked online as fast as we could and got it warm and fed it some sugar water. It gobbled it up, and was moving similarly to how they moved in the nest. The fact that it was drinking made me think things would turn out well. I found a wildlife rehabilitation center and 3 minutes after I left my house the little baby hummingbird died.

One of the happiest things I've ever seen has now left me sitting here, a grown man, unable to stop crying.

I know it's nature, and I wish the mother had built her nest better. It happened, it's over I'm going to bury them as soon as these freaking electricians get off of the property.

I'm just sad and wanted to post about it somewhere filled with people who understand how wonderful and magical birds can be. I rarely ever saw hummingbirds so being able to see them nest and get born was truly a special event. I just wish that it had ended on a happier note.

 

[Bunnylady]

I've been almost nose-to-beak with hummers on several occasions while working in flower beds; they are amazing little birds. I've never seen a hummingbird nest, just finding one would thrill me. I can just imagine how crushing this must feel - yes, it's a tiny thing, hardly catastrophic in the grand scheme and all that, but it is a bitter end to something that brought you a great deal of pleasure. I'm sorry for their loss.

 

[CherishHolland]

I understand what you mean and what you are going through,my husband was working on a job and they asked him while he was in the rafters to clear out any nests,well he brought home a box of baby pigeons. I ended up caring for them and made sure they were independent so I could release them back out to the wild. 3 days before release the kids let a stray cat inside while I was outside tending to the garden,took the cat not even 5 minutes to kill 2 and severely injure the 3rd. I was heartbroken,tossed the cat back outside since he was a stray and proceeded to doctor the last baby who recovered but not fully so he is now living at our local zoo.

 

[montana ducks]

I've been almost nose-to-beak with hummers on several occasions while working in flower beds; they are amazing little birds. I've never seen a hummingbird nest, just finding one would thrill me. I can just imagine how crushing this must feel - yes, it's a tiny thing, hardly catastrophic in the grand scheme and all that, but it is a bitter end to something that brought you a great deal of pleasure. I'm sorry for their loss.

I work a stressful job, but I work from home. So every time I'd get a break or overwhelmed I'd go sit in my chair and just watch them. I can say, without hyperbole, that it was one of the happiest things in my life. Again - I'm not saying my life is awful, I just loved those little guys so much.

I really appreciate the comment, though. I figured people here would understand better than anywhere else. I'm ok now, though. I promise I'm not a crying 40 year old man, I've just been chopping onions in the rain...

 

[montana ducks]

I understand what you mean and what you are going through,my husband was working on a job and they asked him while he was in the rafters to clear out any nests,well he brought home a box of baby pigeons. I ended up caring for them and made sure they were independent so I could release them back out to the wild. 3 days before release the kids let a stray cat inside while I was outside tending to the garden,took the cat not even 5 minutes to kill 2 and severely injure the 3rd. I was heartbroken,tossed the cat back outside since he was a stray and proceeded to doctor the last baby who recovered but not fully so he is now living at our local zoo.

Cherish - I cannot even imagine how tough that must have been. Thank you for sharing it.

Nature is beautiful and harsh. I'm tempted to go enact a genocide on the local hornets nests in retribution for the hornets crawling over the living baby when I found it but I know the hornets weren't doing anything wrong. Just like the cat didn't do anything wrong in your story. But it's still hard not to take it personally, heh.

Very happy to hear at least one of them survived and again, thank you for sharing.