A Tale of Two Kites – Chapter 4: A Chick's Diary: Day 2 to Day 6
After the chick was born, Zen and Tai became very busy feeding and looking after it. It was the most unfortunate that the chick 'disappeared' from the nest just 10 days after hatching. Here, I wish to share with you the life of the small chick and the great efforts Zen and Tai put into parenting their baby during this short period.
Day 2
It was 7 o’clock in the morning. Zen brought several pieces of fish and meat back to the nest. Tai tore the food into little bits and fed them to the chick. Afterwards she ate the rest of them hastily. Zen patiently waited for Tai to finish eating, and then he ate the meal himself.
The kite nest had a narrow edge. Tai had to land carefully on the edge and lower her head to feed her chick. A lot of the time she stretched out her wings to keep her balance and avoid falling into the nest and step on the chick.
After an hour, Zen brought another fish back. Tai ploughed through the leftover fish piled up around the nest, then ripped the fresh fish into bits and put them into the nest. She fed the chick about once every hour. After feeding she brooded the chick.
Day 3
Tai brought out some pink stuff from the nest. It looked like another one she took out yesterday. It didn’t look like any of the food Zen or Tai brought back either. She took a few bites from it. What was that, I wonder?
Zen brought home a fish in the evening. Tai cautiously balanced on the nest’s edge, and then tore the fish into small chunks and fed it to the chick. The chick stretched out its neck and gulped down the meal from its mother. Tai cleaned up the bits of food left on the chick’s beak.
Day 4
Today Tai gave the chick a piece of meat with a small piece of whitish material (probably from a plastic bag). The chick greedily swallowed the meat, but it hesitated when it saw the piece of plastic before taking a nip.
Tai brooded the chick after it finished eating. She covered the chick with a piece of trash when the wind was strong.
Day 5
Today Tai fixed up the nest after feeding the chick. She rearranged the branches, widened the area inside and smoothed the base. She periodically left the nest and flew around for a few minutes. Once she brought a dead mouse home. She held the mouse's head, let its body dangle for a while, and then put it inside the nest.
During the sunny afternoon, Tai stood on the edge of the nest, bathed in the sunshine, and preened her feathers. The chick moved inside the nest and yawned.
Day 6
It was warm and humid in the afternoon. Tai sat in the nest and yawned frequently. Her eyelids drooped. A fly buzzed around her back while she dozed off. A while later she swung her head around, preened her feathers, and in a sudden move, swallowed the fly. (Wow!)
The down on the chick grew thicker. It crawled around the nest, opened its eyes and stared at its mother preening. It then imitated her actions and ‘preened’ the down beneath its neck, on its chest and behind its back.
(Etta 19-12-2001)
Day 2
It was 7 o’clock in the morning. Zen brought several pieces of fish and meat back to the nest. Tai tore the food into little bits and fed them to the chick. Afterwards she ate the rest of them hastily. Zen patiently waited for Tai to finish eating, and then he ate the meal himself.
The kite nest had a narrow edge. Tai had to land carefully on the edge and lower her head to feed her chick. A lot of the time she stretched out her wings to keep her balance and avoid falling into the nest and step on the chick.
After an hour, Zen brought another fish back. Tai ploughed through the leftover fish piled up around the nest, then ripped the fresh fish into bits and put them into the nest. She fed the chick about once every hour. After feeding she brooded the chick.
Day 3
Tai brought out some pink stuff from the nest. It looked like another one she took out yesterday. It didn’t look like any of the food Zen or Tai brought back either. She took a few bites from it. What was that, I wonder?
Zen brought home a fish in the evening. Tai cautiously balanced on the nest’s edge, and then tore the fish into small chunks and fed it to the chick. The chick stretched out its neck and gulped down the meal from its mother. Tai cleaned up the bits of food left on the chick’s beak.
Day 4
Today Tai gave the chick a piece of meat with a small piece of whitish material (probably from a plastic bag). The chick greedily swallowed the meat, but it hesitated when it saw the piece of plastic before taking a nip.
Tai brooded the chick after it finished eating. She covered the chick with a piece of trash when the wind was strong.
Day 5
Today Tai fixed up the nest after feeding the chick. She rearranged the branches, widened the area inside and smoothed the base. She periodically left the nest and flew around for a few minutes. Once she brought a dead mouse home. She held the mouse's head, let its body dangle for a while, and then put it inside the nest.
During the sunny afternoon, Tai stood on the edge of the nest, bathed in the sunshine, and preened her feathers. The chick moved inside the nest and yawned.
Day 6
It was warm and humid in the afternoon. Tai sat in the nest and yawned frequently. Her eyelids drooped. A fly buzzed around her back while she dozed off. A while later she swung her head around, preened her feathers, and in a sudden move, swallowed the fly. (Wow!)
The down on the chick grew thicker. It crawled around the nest, opened its eyes and stared at its mother preening. It then imitated her actions and ‘preened’ the down beneath its neck, on its chest and behind its back.
(Etta 19-12-2001)
