Concern grew over the survival of our resident panting baby Sunbirds in the nest underneath the back veranda during the hot weather . It was heightened when a neighbour said he knew of an episode in which a Sunbird had died due to heat .
It was so hot , the airconditioner was turned on in the house .Outside , underneath the veranda ,in the nest, it was torrid .The afternoon sun shone directly onto the nest in which there were at least two chicks ,one larger than the other .
What to do to save the birds ? Once known as the Black Knight of Australian politics, because of his attire , Pete Steedman , over the phone, in Melbourne, suggested using a fine water dispenser to spray the birds .This was seriously considered , but put on hold because of the concern about the afternoon sun shining directly onto the nest for such a lengthy period .
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| Phew!!!!It ain't half hot, Mum . |
You could not go spraying the Sunbirds like prize fighters for several hours nonstop without dire consequences , possibly causing the nest to collapse, though solidly built . Nevertheless , Pete deserves a commendation from the RSPCA , or the ornithological equivalent organisation , for his bright spray suggestion.
Necessity being the mother of invention, we threw in the towel. Actually , we manoeuvred a bath towel with the help of pegs to completely block the nest from the afternoon sun.
The fast moving mother applied the brakes and skidded around the towel the first time she encountered the new layout on the flight path .
