Baby Cardinals in tomato plt

[gdaddybill]

I swear these babies are twice as big as yesterday. Hope they survive the feral cats and snakes.

[swellcat]

Excellent.

Given the chance, they will grow up and murder the hell out of a hornworm, too.

[Hellmanns]

My high tunnel tomatoes have several nests each year.

[AlittleSalt]

Very nice close-up picture.

We have a lot of Cardinals here between DFW and Waco too.

[swellcat]

Originally Posted by swellcat

Excellent.

Given the chance, they will grow up and murder the hell out of a hornworm, too.

Cardinal savaging hornworms in an ají amarillo (Capsicum baccatum) plant

(Not nearly the photo as Bill's, but what a sight.)

[NarnianGarden]

Would they snack on tomatoes as well?
Pictures are lovely.
.. This is the first year we have seen birds stealing our tomatoes and pecking them...

[gdaddybill]

Originally Posted by NarnianGarden

Would they snack on tomatoes as well?
Pictures are lovely.
.. This is the first year we have seen birds stealing our tomatoes and pecking them...

No, but they (cats & snakes) eat a few mice and I leave them alone for that reason. Poisonous snakes like Copperheads and water moccasins I'm not so tolerant of.

Glad you liked the photo. I had a new 50mm 1.8 that I needed to try out.

[ddsack]

Great photo, please send updates as they grow, if you can, without disturbing the family! How high up from the ground did they build the nest?

[Scooty]

Cardinals, next to Grosbeaks, are probably the most vicious and cantankerous of all songbirds I've ever had the misfortune to meet. Give me a hummingbird any day of the week.

[kchd..]

Originally Posted by swellcat

Excellent.

Given the chance, they will grow up and murder the hell out of a hornworm, too.

My cardinals do the same thing. They're so helpful! Lol

Scooty, are you banding that cuticle biter?

[gdaddybill]

Originally Posted by ddsack

Great photo, please send updates as they grow, if you can, without disturbing the family! How high up from the ground did they build the nest?

The nest is about 4 ft up in a Stump of the World plant(in a cattle panel cage). The garden has been taken over by a chance cross squash (Italian Heirloom yellow crookneck x pumpkin and/or zucchini) so there is a lot of sticky squash stems to make the nest less accessible. I'll check it our each day-they looked a bit heat stressed yesterday-I know I was-so I sprinkled the plant with some water.

[gdaddybill]

Still there. The photo isn't as clear and the light was harsh.

[peppero]

Never had this happen in my garden but who knows? Thanks for the post.

Jon

[gorbelly]

Great thread.

Cardinals are ill-tempered birds, it's true, but they are pest-eating machines. I welcome them into the garden. The only reason I wouldn't be thrilled to see them nesting in my tomatoes is because it would make it awkward to spray.

[Scooty]

Originally Posted by kchd..

Scooty, are you banding that cuticle biter?

Yes, sadly.... him and his ilk far too often.

Originally Posted by gorbelly

Great thread.

Cardinals are ill-tempered birds, it's true, but they are pest-eating machines. I welcome them into the garden. The only reason I wouldn't be thrilled to see them nesting in my tomatoes is because it would make it awkward to spray.

Only ill-tempered to us. Unlike cardinals, Jays have the courage to chase off hawks, but at least, the latter won't try to take a chunk of flesh off me.