When I opened the gate, I scoffed. Yes, I admit, I openly scoffed at the bird who built this nest. Silly wren, I thought, the second time the little bird flew into my face as I unhooked the chain and opened the gate, I hope you’ve given your mate a few other alternatives. Male wrens, presumably to highlight their industriousness and resourcefulness, often build multiple dummy nests for their potential mates to choose from and, in some cases, to act as decoys. Dummy being the operative word here.
A week later, a loud cheeping from inside the pipe proved just how much I knew about what constitutes a desirable nest. I may have rejected the nest due to the nosy neighbors, but apparently, for Mrs. Wren, the neighbors were negotiable in the face of a waterproof, anti-seismic, predator-free space for hatching her young.
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