Hummingbird Nest, Two Babies

This summer a hummingbird nest appeared at the edge of the woods in back of our house. Here is a photo from June 16th.

And from another angle. The lichen cladding the side of the nest gives it a well-tended, camouflaged, and almost armored look.

Mom would visit from time to time on 6/16. The nest is about 15 feet above the ground, so I needed both a stepladder, to get a picture of anything except the bottom of the nest, and the full zoom (300mm equivalent) of my point-and-shoot camera.

Now fast forward to July 13th. The two babies in the nest have been visible for the last couple of weeks (click to enlarge). The yellow leaves are due to the heat and drought we've had for several weeks. Joan is bracing the stepladder, which is on uneven ground, so I'm willing to climb a rung or two higher than before.

Then one turned around, and the picture is of two baby hummingbird butts.

Time to move the ladder. In this picture, if you enlarge and look closely, you'll see that the closer bird has his or her eyes closed.

One more repositioning of the ladder, for a last shot.

These chicks barely have room to breathe; they'll be fledging soon.