So it is beneficial bee, I saw some at my backyard. I have lots of wasps too and I am trying to induce them away from the grape vines and fig trees.. how? I covered the fig trees with bird net to dicover two small birds trying hard to pull the net or break it. Close examination I found that there is abird nest in the tree with very small three babies.I had to take the net off. catch 22

Squirrels will kill adult birds at feeders also. When I lived around them I had squirrel baffles on the poles and all my feeders had grids. My platform feeder had a 1" grid over it also to keep out the starlings and cowbirds that bully the song birds. Keeping the feeders and birdhouses quite far from fences and trees helps also. Squirrels can jump really far. I have a friend who calls them flying rats. I also had a clear dome over one niger feeder. It's a lot of paraphernalia but I felt like I had to protect them if I was going to lure birds to the feeders. Here we have trouble with hawks that sit on the fence and wait for the quail and small birds to get distracted. There's kind of a downside to feeders and bird baths I guess. Birdhouses are easier to protect. Sounds like you have a good plan for the houses. So nice that you are looking out for the babies.

The ivory tusk is only valuable if you have satisfactory documentation that it was collected before the ban was enacted. Otherwise it is contraband and subject to seizure. Since it came from your grandmother, it most likely was collected pre-ban, but it would be worthwhile finding some evidence of that (even old pics, will do). A qualified art appraiser may also be able to satisfactorily date the overall object to a period before the ban, as well. I know it may seem like too much government meddling, but tusks are only acquired by killing mature elephants which is why the ivory trade nearly wiped out the species. Since legal ivory trade is almost non-existent now, documented old ivory may be even more valuable as raw material for repairing ivory objects (piano keys, musical instruments, inlays, etc.). I really don't think the authorities will burst into your house and arrest you for having the nest. I was very sorry to have to post the info and dampen your pleasure. But I am always on alert for when birds' eggs, nests or feathers start to get mentioned as fashionable for decoration. That's when true environmental harm can start: as people begin to seek out nests and don't undertsand how harmful it can be. I have to confess that I sometimes display (for a short period) a nest found during winter walks, and very often bird feathers lost from molting or even broken egg shell fragments I find. But they are only transitory things on my desk for a day or so, then out they go. I love looking at the colors mostly. My mother's collection wouldn't be a draw to non-scientists, for various reasons. And it wasn't gathered here in the US, so it's not local species. But you're right, I should do something with it - if only because I am in my 60's and eventually someone else will inherit the responsibilty for it. L

My phoebes had skipped a year of nesting in their usual place (above the porch light fixture near my office door). My mirror set-up had scared them away. I should have realized that birds do not "like" mirrors -- but I didn't think about it at the time. I did see a bird pecking all day at the mirror, looking behind it, then pecking angrily at it when seeing the "intruder" again. That bird came back the next day to peck at the mirror again. I felt sorry for him wasting his time. But, I didn't think about the phoebes reaction being the same. So, they never nested there last year. I removed the mirror, but they still did not return to nest there this spring. Instead, they nested on another side of the house -- under our raised deck (same as last year). But, after the 1st brood was fledged -- THEY MOVED BACK TO THEIR OLD NESTING SPOT! So, the phoebes apparently got fed up with the disturbances created by our toy poodle (who is let out onto our raised deck several times a day.) The poodle would be walking directly over their nest, and possibly pissing over their nest. The nest building started May 25, 2021 and completed on the 30th or 31st. The mother was sitting on the nest on May 31, and there were 2 eggs in the nest. So, the first egg was likely delivered on May 30. By June 3, there were 5 eggs. All the eggs hatched on June 17 -- so, exactly 2 weeks after the last egg was laid. Interesting that all eggs hatched on the same day, even though each egg was laid a day apart. When I peeked, all the shells were gone. So, even tho I didn't see it, I assume that the parents removed all the egg shells. I also see the parents flying away with baby-bird poop. The poop looks like worms, and the parents carry it away from the nest. They either drop it or eat it (it is undigested food). Today is June 23, and the parents are often very busy bringing food. The bay birds are still too small to see without using a mirror over the nest. Here is a link to a very interesting article from 1937, detailing the observations of nesting habits of phoebes as studied over a 3-yr period. A few interesting details: Female does all the nest building. Incubation starts at varying times - sometimes after 3rd egg, sometimes after 4th, sometimes after 5th. The male apparently does none of the incubation. After fledging, the young birds remain close to the nest, getting farther way as the days pass. Both parents still feed the young after they fledge -- feeding them for periods of up to 18 days. Reliance on the parents gradually decreases. The parents may eventually show harsh treatment of the young to get them to go out on their own. Interesting. https://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/auk/v059n03/p0410-p0417.pdf