I remember our first summer in our new home and how many new sights and sounds we experienced. It’s the time of year right now when I’m on the watch for returning birds. I can pretty much identify all our regular visitors these days, but that first year I was constantly hitting my “Birds of Wisconsin” book for help. One of the most memorable new birds was Phoebe, the eastern phoebe. I just heard the familiar call of “fee-bee! fee-bee!” last week and I got nostalgic.

In the Spring of 2022, Phoebe decided her nest had to be built cantilevered off the narrow trim above our bathroom window. I saw a bird fluttering in that corner incessantly and soon she was slinging mud and debris, some of it landing on the glass. I thought I should probably discourage the behavior and went out and knocked her work down every couple hours on the first day. On Day 2, she was back at it and I decided if she really wanted that spot so badly she could have it.

She had a nest up in about 24 hours. It was a feat of engineering, not only for the speed of the build but for the fact that it remained stable on such a narrow foundation. That first year, she had two broods, launching four kids into the world with each batch.

She returned to the same nest the following year and did the exact same thing. Two more broods, eight more kids in total. In year 3, the nest was looking a bit worn out and she attempted to build a new one by the utility boxes that are also in that corner. I stuffed any empty container I could find into the gaps and knocked down her old nest so she had a spot to start anew. Again, 24 hours later, a new nest filled her old spot. Only one brood that year though, and then we never saw her again.

Eastern phoebes are insect hunters. We watched from a bedroom window that is kitty-corner to her spot as she delivered food to hungry mouths. The pictures are terrible because of the angle and the glare, but I am pretty sure she brought her kids a grasshopper or wasp one day:

I’ve cleared that corner this spring in case a new eastern phoebe wants to grace us with her presence. Maybe one of Phoebe’s roughly twenty children will remember where she grew up. I hear their calls early in the morning now and can only hope.