Let me introduce you to my new rent-free tenants, who recently moved into the one-room, open-air, slightly breezy front-porch fern they’re using as a luxury penthouse. They have introduced themselves as house finches named Walter and Gertrude.
Gertrude is the quiet little lady who has moved into my fern. She’s a small house finch with soft brown, streaky feathers that help her blend right into the plant, like she’s wearing perfect camouflage. If you didn’t know she was there, you might mistake her for just another part of the fern.
Walter is a small house finch with patches of red on his head and chest, like he’s been dipped in raspberry juice or brushed with a little bit of watercolor paint. The rest of his feathers are brown and streaky, but that splash of red makes him look like he dressed up for a special occasion. When he perches near the fern, he often sits a little taller, as if he knows he’s the colorful one.
I first noticed Walter and Gertrude on May 12, when I heard all kinds of chatter on my front porch. Their little finch voices were going back and forth like they were having a lively discussion about real estate. When I peeked outside, I caught a photo of them siting by the hanging fern, clearly checking it out to see if it would make a good place to call home.
The Green Nest Penthouse
I first noticed the start of a nest on Saturday evening. This isn’t the first time I’ve “rented out” my ferns, but this time I decided to provide a little extra security for my new tenants and mounted a camera above the plant. I checked the camera throughout the evening, but everything stayed quiet. When I took a closer look at the nest, I could see they were using lots of cottonwood tree fluff, woven together with stems, grasses, and thin twigs. They had even woven part of the fern into the nest to help attach and secure it to the plant.
