Breakfast in bed

Back to the same spot

Just before Easter, a pair of kestrels had let me stay with them for over an hour in the south of Het Vinne. I suspected then that they had a nest nearby. In June I went back to the same spot, and this time there was no doubt.

Sunbathing

Those were hot days. Even early in the morning it was already warming up. The sun was behind me, shining straight into the nest box, and there they were: five kestrel chicks, about a week old, still in their white down, lying in the sun as if they had nothing else to do. Both parents were flying back and forth. I stood about a hundred metres away and kept filming. Sooner or later, I knew, one of them would come in.

A look my way

Then the male swept in and landed right on the edge of the nest. He turned his head and looked straight at me. I couldn’t see whether he had brought anything, but there was prey in the nest.

Breakfast

He dove in and started tearing it apart, piece by piece. I couldn’t make out what it was. Most likely a mouse. Then he began handing it out, and all that calm sunbathing was gone in a second. The chicks begged, nearly attacked him, and grabbed everything they could get.

Worth the wait

In April I had wondered why this pair stayed so close. Now I was watching the answer have breakfast in bed. Later I posted the clip with UB40’s “Breakfast in Bed” underneath, because that is exactly what it was. It was a beautiful thing to see.