birds

[daneswalk]

walking in the field today with my dog i came across a nest with two chicks in it both doing well i am told that they are skylark chicks we have foxes going about in this field do you think the chicks will survive

[Pigletion]

If they are skylarks there will be some very noisy parents nearby. Saw some in Wales a couple of weeks ago when walking in the hills.

Skylarks make loads of noise if things are near their nest. They do the same when being chased by a bigger bird too.

Not sure what happens at night with foxes though..

[burnhal]

They have two chances really! They either will or won't make it. If a fox, stoat, crow, magpie comes across them then its curtains. How big were they? They will keep pretty still and quiet whilst the parents are off foraging. Also as mentioned above skylarks do a pretty convincing 'rat run' to attract predators away. If they are nearly fledged they will hide wherever they happen to be. Survival is a matter of chance- nature in the raw. Best bet for you is to steer clear of the nest as much as possible- you trace will lead others there.

[daneswalk]

sorry for not replying sooner but we had a party to go to which took us away for the week-end sad to say the nest is now empty no sign of the adult birds and the young were not big enough to fly so it looks like some predator has taken them however i am watching a nest of the blue tits and they are coming on well will let you know how they get on

[burnhal]

All is not totally lost- skylarks do leave the nest before they can fly