[This is another one of my scatological posts, feel free to skip it and wait for the next one!]
For the baby phoebes, food deliveries are fast and furious, often at intervals of only a couple of minutes: a small moth at 2.20pm, a large moth at 2.23pm and a huge dragonfly at 2.25pm. There are five mouths to feed.
What goes in must come out. Phoebes are meticulous housekeepers. When the young feel the urge, they raise their bottoms towards the edge of the nest:
The white blob is the fecal sac. It bursts out with some force
to be caught by the mother:
who then flies off to dispose of it elsewhere.
For some reason she made a tidy little heap of them at the top of this corner post:
As they get close to fledging, they start to just do their own thing over the edge of the nest (and onto our doormat), but until then, the environs are spotless.
Eyes on the Wild 
Hard work to give your babies healthy meals. Interesting how neatly the parents clean up. Hopefully your doormat is hose-washable.
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The mother’s behavior, fascinating. We’re fortunate you have such a patient, meticulous eye!! >
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I did not know that about their little bottoms. Very clever little guys they are!
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