White-rumped Munias

Today I discovered something very different from usual. I found a pair of baby birds sleeping soundly in the warmth of a nest lovingly built by their parents. They were still very small, their bodies still fragile, their feathers just beginning to grow, and their eyes not yet fully open to the world.

The look in their squinted eyes seemed to be pleading with me not to hurt them. They both looked so fragile, but beneath that fragility, I saw a spirit slowly blossoming with each breath. Their eyes, which had not yet fully opened, slowly widened when I told them I wouldn't hurt them. They even began to coo, perhaps their fear slowly fading and joy giving way.

They were baby White-rumped Munias, or Lonchura striata in Latin, from the Estrildidae family. I found this bird's nest in a kaffir lime tree. The first thing I noticed was the mother, singing happily, standing on a higher branch. The nest was at a relatively low altitude, easily accessible.