Updates :-)

The hatchling is still doing okay. Its foster parents are feeding it "okay" (could be better), and I'm still supplementing as needed. They now have EIGHT eggs in the nest. I checked them all, and the older eggs aren't viable, which I expected. It's too soon to tell if the newer eggs are good or not.

In the meantime, Patches and Sugar's first clutch is doing fair. There were five eggs total, but one mysteriously vanished. They may have eaten it for the calcium. Another egg held a baby that apparently tried to hatch, but must have had problems. It didn't make it. :-( I found it in the seed tray, tossed from the nest. (That's how the parents keep the nest clean. Any deceased chicks must be removed, and the parents generally take care of it in a timely manner.) The third egg hatched and the chick seems to be doing well. The fourth egg hatched, but the chick died shortly afterwards. It was long and skinny, so there may have been something wrong with it. And the fifth egg hasn't hatched. It may be a dud; I haven't candled it. It's sad that some chicks didn't make it, but so far the one that did is doing well. I wish there was a way to skip the first clutch and go right to the second clutch, but it's the only way the parents will learn how to care for youngsters. Some new parents know exactly what to do, and others totally freak out when those round white things turn into little pink wiggly things.

Shelly and Ghost have two eggs, but may be expecting more since they're not yet incubating. Both of them are experienced parents.

The societies, spices, and stars in the double flight cage are all doing well. We had to remove the bronze winged mannikins. Despite their tiny size and supposedly passive personality, they'd started picking on the other finches and bullying them. They plucked the poor male star finch's chest something awful. :-( It was a JOB trying to catch them, as fast as they are, but between the two of us, we finally got them. They're now in a 30" breeder cage in the bird room. I don't know if they're a male and female, or if they're the same sex. I do know that they're both sleeping in the nest at night. :-)

That's all the news I have for the moment, but I'm sure there will be more birdy updates soon! :-)