Answers to "Bird's Nests"

A Guide to Themed Specific Questions:
Sample Answers to Specific Questions: Birds and Nests
Nesting Birds Videos

Compare and contrast the various nests made by the birds featured in the videos. Birds make nests in a variety of ways. The most basic is no nest at all. Just lay the egg on a flat piece of ground and leave it at that. Sea birds nesting on cliffs are a group of birds that has opted for this approach. Of the nests shown in the video most are cup shaped (See Appendix II: Nesting for a chart that compares and contrasts the various nests seen in videos).
Which nests are well constructed? Poorly constructed? The typical cup shaped nest is the robin’s nest but the huge nest of the Bald eagle is also cup shaped. The more primitive nests made by herons and cormorants are simply sticks laid on top of another and not bound by mud, grass, spider webs, lichens or other material. But stick of cup shaped all nests have advantages and disadvantages. A huge bald eagle nest might fall of its own weight. A grebe’s nest might be washed away b waves. A robin’s nest might be easily spotted by a raccoon looking for its next meal. More to the point, whether a nest is a work of sophisticated engineering or a hodgepodge of sticks (…or a bare piece of ground!) if it leads to the successful hatching and fledging of the next generation then who are we to say they were poorly constructed?
What are the nests made of? See Nesting PDF below
In almost all birds featured both parents help take care of the young. In which species does only one parent look after the young birds? Mallard duck, Wood duck. Only the female looks after the young.
Which baby birds are precocial? Precocial: Born or hatched in a condition requiring relatively little parental care, as by having hair or feathers, open eyes, and the ability to move about. Water birds, reptiles, and herd animals usually have precocial young. Species shown in videos: Canada goose, Mallard duck, Trumpeter swan, Wood duck
Which baby birds are altricial? Altricial: helpless at birth or hatching and requiring parental care for a period of time. Species shown in videos: Gnatcatcher, robin, grebe, osprey, bald eagle, great blue heron, barn swallow. What evidence can you site from the video clips? The hatchlings are poorly feathered, confined to nest, reliant on parents for food and shelter.
What evidence can you spot in the videos of birds using man-made material in their nests? Grebe nest: material, Robin nest: brick wall, downspout Osprey: Man-made platform Barn swallow: nest built on garage beams
How do the various locations of the nests help protect the young birds from predators? Bald Eagle: Top of tall tree, Osprey: Surrounded by water Grebe: Floating mat away from shore Canada goose: hidden, male actively defends nest Gnatcatcher: hidden in trees Barn Swallow: built close to human activity. On rafters Heron/ Cormorant: nest in colonies, greater protection in large numbers, reduces the chance of an individual nest being attacked
What weather conditions might affect the success of the nesters? Winds can knock nest down. Flooding/ large waves can destroy nest. Sudden cold spell may kill young or cause a decline in prey species needed to feed young. Heat waves can stress hatchlings
Which birds nest in colonies? See Nesting PDF below
Which birds nest in their own territories? Gnatcatcher, Trumpeter swan, Canada goose are territorial. Robins are not really territorial. Territorial birds are those that defend a given area against others of their same kind. Canada geese are very defensive of their areas, robins are not. Red-winged blackbirds are territorial as are gnatcatchers. Colonial nesting birds are not beyond the area around their immediate nest. Birds that defend territories look for an area that has good nesting material, shelter and access to food and water. Birds that do not defend territories typically have access to abundant food resources and shelter.