Hummingbird builds nest on hook hanging in noisy Victoria welding shop
Over the decades, Dave Clarke has discovered the occasional unexpected creature at his engineering and welding company – like a rubber duck stuck on the front of a truck, or a plastic poop emoji with protruding peepers – but this was a first.
“It’s right in the middle of the shop,” Dave says, pointing to a chain hanging from the ceiling with a hook at the end.
“On the crane hook.”
Sometime during the night, a bird had started building a nest in the curve of the dangling hook.
“She must have woke up in the morning and gone, ‘Oh my God!'” Dave laughs. “‘What have I done?!’”
Trucks are rumbling. Metal is clanking. Sparks are flying. This is no nurturing nursery.
But the hummingbird was undeterred, and eventually manufactured a pair of products that left the shop’s human welders in awe.
“How the heck did a little bird lay that big of an egg?” Dave laughs. “A couple days later there was another one!”
Once the babies started hatching, thanks to their mother's unrivalled work ethic, they never stopped growing.
“Talk about perseverance,” Dave says as the hummingbird flys over to the nest, lands on the hook, and starts feeding.
“It’s huge.”
While the feathered family has earned the respect of Dave’s crew, his customers were another matter.
“They are just surly kinds of guys,” Dave says. “They look like they would chew nails and spit them out.”
But then Dave brings them around back to meet the birds, and their tough exteriors crumble.
“The compassionate side of them comes out!” Dave smiles.
Their hearts seemed to swell even bigger than the young birds that have almost outgrown their nest.
“Now, they’re to the point where they’re getting ready to fly,” Dave says, as one of the birds stretches its torso out of the nest and flaps its wings furiously.
And when the inevitable happens, the previously unthinkable will occur, Dave will decommission the crane hook
“The hook will come off the chain and be displayed here forever,” Dave smiles.
Unlike the rubber duck and plastic emoji, the empty nest will be a reminder of the full hearts these little birds engineered.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Louis Gossett Jr., 1st Black man to win supporting actor Oscar, dies at 87
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries 'Roots,' has died. He was 87.
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
Why Kim Kardashian is being sued for 'knockoff' furniture
The estate of minimalist contemporary artist Donald Judd filed a lawsuit against Kardashian this week, claiming the fashion and beauty mogul promoted 'cheap knockoffs' of his furniture designs.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
King Charles will attend Easter Sunday service at Windsor
Buckingham Palace officials say King Charles III and Queen Camilla will attend an Easter service at the chapel at Windsor Castle on Sunday.