Local Birds Eggs

 

At this time of year, we find loads of abandoned birds eggs at the farm.  The kids collect them and place them in nests we have collected from the ground over the years, fill them with feathers and fluff and hope!

 

We believed we were collecting more abandoned robins eggs than any other species, but after some research, discovered these might be the eggs of starlings, which are much more common and abundant. We turned this into a little science/art project to learn about local eggs, their sizes, colours and markings, so we can identify them as they appear.

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In order of size, the species that are most common in Southern Ontario: barn swallow, robin, red-winged blackbird, starling, cardinal, killdeer, great-horned owl, red-tailed hawk and turkey vulture. 

We noted the birds with speckled eggs, might be more likely to make their nests on the ground (killdeer) or leave their nests frequently, hence the need for camouflage.

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Our resident birds expanded this lesson by dying eggs with cabbage water!