I did not expect the doves to return. But they did.

Last evening at 7.10 pm there was a faint call of a dove. Suddenly a bird landed on a branch of my Artocarpus tree. Two others followed. Surprise of surprise, they were the two fledglings and a parent bird.

There was an initial scrambling of who was to perch where. Obviously the choice location was to be in the centre, squeezed between a parent and a fledgling. The younger of the two finally got the choice spot.

The fledglings had yet to fully develop the blue orbital rings, that of the older more pronounced that the younger. The pale pink breast was clearly seen in the fledglings. In the older, the pinkish area went right up to the neck, not so in the younger.

They were on the same spot throughout the night. This morning at 7.20 am they suddenly became active, pecking the parent bird around the neck, possibly to be fed. But this was not to be. There was a distant call of the other parent (male?) and suddenly the bird flew off to a nearby perch. A few minutes later both fledglings followed.

The older of the fledgling is now 19 days old. How long more will they be dependent on the parents?

On the 23rd August at 8.30 am there was a cooing around the old nesting tree. Suddenly a bird flew to a tree nearer to me. It was one of the two fledglings, then 12 days old. One of the parents was nearby. Five minutes later both flew off. Was the fledgling cooing or was it the parent bird? Was this the younger fledgling? Had the older become independent? I have since not heard nor seen the doves around. It looks like goodbye…

Well, I was mistaken. The saga is not over yet. The family of doves is still around. I have heard the cooing of the parent birds on and off but did not see them until last evening at around 7 pm. The entire family of both parents and two fledglings was around the scaffolding of my neighbour’s house that is currently being renovated. Both parent birds are still caring for their offspring. The fledglings were still not able to fend for themselves, flapping their wings excitedly and scurrying around the parents to be fed. The orbital rings have still to be developed in the fledglings, although the pinkish touch in the central breast area is just beginning to be apparent. I wonder how many more days will they have to be dependent on their parents? Before they fly free!

The morning after the chicks fledged, they were still on the same branch of the mempat (Cratoxylum formosum) tree. Later that morning the parent bird and one fledgling flew to the roof of my neighbour’s house, leaving the other behind along the common railing. Despite parental persuasion, this fledgling remained there, not even moving when I was close by. I suppose, as with all newly fledged birds, it had yet to sense any danger from humans. After four days they were still nearby and being fed by the parent bird. Then they flew further afield, probably not to be seen again. Will they return and nest nearby? I will have to wait and see…

At around 2.30 pm today, both chicks took their maiden flight and landed on a branch of a nearby tree. The parent dove had not flown into the nest to feed them since 7.30 am. This no doubt provided the incentive for the chicks to leave the nest.

Things have developed beyond expectation. Despite the heavy human traffic, no one noticed the nest or its occupants. Workers moved in and out of their worksites within metres of the nesting tree. Drivers parked their vehicles by the tree. And pedestrians walked past it day and night. The camouflage must have been very effective. And there were the occasional duetting as one bird called while its mate replied.

The incubation took 13 days while the chicks took 15 days to fledge. The nest and birds were right under the noses of all those noisy people who constantly moved around the tree for all of 28 days. And all this time they remained unnoticed and unmolested.

Suddenly I am left with very much less to do. No more sneaking out to take a peek. No more lugging the camera mounted on a tripod. No more worrying that the location could soon be discovered.

In all I spent at least 50 hours, if not more, keeping watch on these birds. It is fortunate that they decided to build their nest just outside my house. Otherwise it would take more effort and time. Now I understand why a bird watcher told me that it was too much work to “behaviour watch” than “bird watch.”

Late this evening I managed to locate the parent and its two fledglings huddled together on a branch of a nearby tree. I will try to monitor the fledglings in the days ahead…