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Birding/parenting cardinals

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Expert: Julia Booth - 8/14/2008


Question
I've observed that my mating pair can have up to three babies at once, but they seem to be staggared as to when the parents bring them to the feeder.  Do the eggs hatch hatch days a part, or all at once?

Answer
All the eggs in one brood should hatch on the same day. But Cardinals will actually lay eggs and begin incubating them while they still have babies in the nest. The mother will sit on the eggs while the father continues to feed the ready to fledge offspring. They can do this as many as four times in one breeding season, often only staggered by a week or two.

Julia

Birding

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Julia Booth

Expertise

I can answer questions about bird identification (by sight or sound), behavior, distribution, population, conservation, mating, nesting, fledging and feeding. I do have some practical knowledge about foreign species, but identification skills are limited in that arena. Bear in mind that as much as I know, it's possible that at least some of you will ask a question that I am unable to answer. At which point I would direct you to wherever or whomever I thought could provide you with that information.

Experience

I have 15 years birding experience in Southern California.

Organizations
Audubon Society

Education/Credentials
My education is in art and photography -but I have a substantial portfolio of nature related work.

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