Nests.
Have you ever stopped to consider a birds nest? They are an amazing feat of architectural design. They are built to withstand all forms of weather conditions and to protect tiny, helpless baby birds.
At the moment, I have any number and type of bird nests around me. Outside, we have a robin's nest in my chocolate vine on the southeast corner of our house, and another robin's nest in my honeysuckle on the northeast corner of the the house.Inside my house, I have the parakeets raising 2 baby budgies, and my silly finches think that it is time for them to raise more babies too. Back around Christmas time, my finches raised 2 babies. I took the nests out of the aviary, but that didn't seem to discourage them too much. Last week
they started building a "nest" in the BOTTOM of the aviary! Then proceeded to lay 2 eggs and they were actually trying to incubate them. So, I put the nest basket back in the aviary and put the 2 eggs in it. I don't know if they will continue sitting on the eggs now, or if they will start over.
All 3 of these "nests" are different. The robins use sticks and twigs and anything else they can find to weave their nests. Parakeets in the wild use hollowed out trees to raise their young. In captivity breeders use nest boxes that simulate a hollowed out tree. In the wild, finches nests are flask-shaped with spherical nest chamber. They are made of grass stems, large on outside, getting progressively smaller towards inside. They usually build their nests on twigs of bushes and low trees, occasionally in hollows or on the ground. In captivity, breeders use nest baskets.
It seems that every type of bird builds their own unique nests. Take Eagles nests for instance, both the male and female bring nesting materials; some eagle researchers believe it's the female who usually places the sticks in the nest. It takes from 1 - 3 months to build an Eagle nest. Once it's built, a pair often uses it year after year, adding sticks and fresh plants and working on construction at the beginning of the nesting season. Also, many times the pair makes nest repairs or builds onto the nest for a while after the babies have left for the season. Eagles nests can weight up to 3 tons!!
Compare that to the Hummingbirds nest. The typical hummingbird nest is tiny, about the size of half an English walnut shell. The outer part is covered with moss and plant fibers. Sometimes it is shingled with lichens. The rest is made of plant down and spider webs.When a woman is about to give birth, some people say they being "nesting". Which is to say, they have the urge to make everything ready for the new baby. This is an appropriate description, because birds are very fussy about their nests and want them "just so" in preparation for their new arrivals.
Every day I am amazed at the wonder of God's creation that is all around me. To think about all the different birds and how He has created them each in their own special ways. From what they eat, where they live, how they build their nests. It is mind boggling. I'm so glad that my God is not boring, and that He has such a wondrous imagination!
Matthew 8:20
Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests,
but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."
but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."
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