Nighthawk (DDS267)

The end of this year's shama breeding season is approaching but I still have a few breeding pairs. Most of the birds that were hatched this year are in the midst of their first molt and this is the time that breeders await with anticipation the completion of the molt of the young birds.

Michael, Jeffrey and I molt our birds in aviaries if we can.  During this time, we try to let the birds have a quiet time so that they can have a good molt.  Any serious assessment of their song, character, display and structure needs to await the completion of the molt and the bird's rise in form.  It is only then that it can truly be assessed.

While the molt is a quiet time, this does not prevent my friends and I from speculating on how the birds are likely to turn out.  In the course of our discussions over the phone, photos or videos may be sent so that the person at the other end can have a better idea of what is being discussed.

The photos below are of Nighthawk (DDS267), which is owned by Michael.  Its taimong tails were about 5 1/2". It is about 7 1/2 months old - the son of Falcon and Funkie's daughter. This pair seem to produce the type of shama that my friends and I like.


The photos were taken by Michael (under dim light) and sent to me in the course of our phone conversation last night when I enquired how DDS267's molt was progressing.

Its molt is approaching completion and Michael will transfer it from aviary to cage in about 2 weeks.  Both of us are waiting with anticipation to see it in a cage so that we can better assess it.