One of the joys of being a homeowner is having a yard. An outdoor space makes living more enjoyable. It’s great to be out on a deck or in the grass when the summer sun shines down on you. Spending time in your backyard is one of the nicest things you can do during the late spring and summer. But if you do have a yard or outdoor space on your property, you know that it requires upkeep.
You need to mow your lawn, rake up leaves, and prune trees when they get too big. But if you had pruning trees on your to-do list this month, you better halt. The government has issued a warning to anyone looking to do this chore this summer. And you need to watch out for tiny eggs in your yard or risk governmental action.
Hummingbirds are beautiful and a joy to have to visit your property. My parents get them every summer. They pitch a hummingbird feeder out on their property and then watch from their sunroom as the little birds enjoy the sweet nectar.
Even if you love watching these birds, you might not be aware of how these tiny buggers nest. In an effort to protect these beautiful creatures, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a list to help you help protect these birds.
“Hummingbird eggs are tiny, about the size of jelly beans!” the US Fish and Wildlife Service said in a statement. “Please remember to carefully check for nests before you trim trees and shrubs this spring.”
The warning is simple enough to comply with. If you simply take a look at the branches you want to cut before chopping them off, you can help save the lives of tiny hummingbirds before they hatch.
But it isn’t quite as easy as it sounds. Hummingbird nests are teeny-tiny. The nests are beautiful and weigh less than a tenth of an ounce. That’s small. So if you’re cutting down branches, you need to be on the lookout for the bird nests actively. They’re easy to miss if you’re not observant or aware that you should be looking for them.
Female hummingbirds want to protect their eggs and hatchlings from predators. That’s why they camouflage their nests in with the trees and shrubs they use to build them. Mama birds gather materials like moss, spider webs, and leaves to construct their nests. With building materials like that, it is easy to miss them when you’re cutting down branches.
Hummingbirds live all over the country. And they love gardens with flowers that are bursting with nectar. If you’ve seen hummingbirds near your home, you can bet they have a nest somewhere nearby. They’re not traveling miles and miles from their nest every day to get food.
The USFWS also issued a list about bird nests so you can support our avian brethren. One fun-fact about an eagle nest is that they use them year after year. The biggest one on record was 20 feet deep and weighed as much as two tons. Talk about a sturdy abode to raise America’s bird.