So I feed the local house sparrow residence in my area and have ended up getting to know them individually. Bearing in mind that 2 of the sparrows are extremely old with one being 5 and another 6 (when the average lifespan is 3).

I get a call on a break at work from my mum saying she finds a dead sparrow by my bedroom window outside. I instantly think the worst and think it's the oldest. It turns out to be the first fledgling that came to feed from us. I knew this because of the signs of maturity. He had a small vague bib and no grey crown meaning he was around the same age as the first chicks. The sparrows worked tirelessly and struggled to breed first time round due to the freak snow at the beginning of the breeding season.

From me inspecting his body, it turns out that the heatwave was the most likely cause. First they have to start the breeding season with unexpected snow and then have to deal with a heatwave during most of it. They've had a tough year.

My plan is to either get him stuffed or get his bones from him and preserve them. So rest in peace my feathered baby, you did well to get this far <3


Art by Symrea