Forbidden Love
We’ve seen them around the reserve, with their flirtatious behaviour, making strange noises in bushes and open displays of affection. No, I’m not discussing the lunchtime behaviour of The Lodge staff (I doubt I’d be able to write about that!), but actually the behaviour of a couple of our resident birds.
Firstly, there is a male firecrest. He’s been singing, displaying and generally trying to attract a mate. Nothing forbidden about that you may think, except that there is a lack of other firecrests at The Lodge. So (the forbidden bit) he’s attracted a female goldcrest!
I watched them yesterday, hopping from branch to branch, openly flirting with each other, well the bird equivalent. She seems smitten by the slightly exotic, clearly alluring stranger. Can we blame her though? A male firecrest is a striking bird, with his bright orange crest and white eye stripe. He is certainly unique on the reserve and it seems the resident goldcrests have failed to chase him off, they’ve tried their best though!
They’ve gone quiet today, obviously hiding in the bushes from disapproving stares, particularly those spurned goldcrest males. If, and when, they produce chicks, what will we call them? They’ll technically be hybrids. I’ve searched for information on firecrest/goldcrest hybrids and they do exist, but the chicks should be infertile, i.e. they won’t be able to produce their own chicks further down the line.
So will our very own little Romeo and Juliet avoid the same fate as that famous couple? I’d like to say that they’ll realise the error of their ways and go back to their own kind. But (as far as we know) they’re aren’t any other firecrests at The Lodge, so who who can blame him for seeking a little bit of company after the long, cold and lonely winter?