A Little Bit More
Nest sanitation may not be a glamorous part of bird’s life, but it is an important part. A nest needs to be clean and warm and as parasite-free as possible. A heavily infested nest may even be enough to wipe out an entire nest of babies. A dirty nest is a breeding site for a variety of insects and other parasites as well as being much more obvious to predators.
The urge for parents to remove a fecal sac from a nest, or any foreign material for that matter, is instinctive and often includes the removal of the eggshells after hatching. Some species, such as the Tree Sparrow and Yellow Warbler eat the shells, while many others simply carry them away. Bird banders are well aware of this instinctive urge of the parents to remove foreign material from their nests. Often a bander has watched helplessly as a recently banded nestling is tossed out of the nest. The parent is simply attempting to remove the band encircling its nestling’s leg and the baby goes along with the foreign object! This can often be remedied by replacing the young in the nest. Soon, many parents simply accept the band as “part of what should be there” and no longer try to remove it.
In the spring during the nesting season in the Northern Hemisphere, if researchers see an adult bird carrying a fecal sac, they know that nesting activity is underway. Noting the direction from which the parent has flown can often lead them directly to the area where the nest is located.
Activities
Science & Art– Wild Canary
Objectives: Use reference material to help with coloring in bird drawing
Materials: Reference material (online or books) and coloring materials and paper
The illustration of the American Goldfinches (often called “Wild Canary”) on the unit poster is quite simple and not very detailed. Have your students see if they can find some colored photos of the American Goldfinch (nesting plumage, not winter) that they can use as reference for coloring in the illustration on their own. Print out our pdf image of the poster on white paper (our pdf version will print out black and white, not color), make a copy for each student, and distribute.
The students should be able to find some good images of this common species, note the differences between male and female and color accordingly. Next time they see this bird in the field, they’ll be sure to know what it is.
Key Concepts
Structures and Functions, Life Cycles, Identification, Behavior and Regulation, Adaptations and Diversity
Questions
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