Nesting Behavior of Oriental Pratincole

                                         Fig: Oriental Pratincole chick just after hatching

                                     

Nesting season of Oriental Pratincole is mostly peak summer i.e from April to June The nest is a simple scrap on the ground or  in short grasses on river and reservoir edges. They nests in colony and   also with other species like little terns and small pratincoles.The female lays about 3 to 4 greenish grey densely spotted eggs.Both the parent incubate the eggs for about 18 days.The chicks leave the nest soon after hatching and hide in grasses or stone.Feeding of chicks can hardly be seen as they are under hide.The above photograph is taken at Mahanadi Reservoir of Odisha, India.

Edible Nest

It's amazing to know that bird nests can be edible.The nest built by a small bird (Aerodramus fuciphagus) of  the swift family  found in South-east Asia  is made of solidified saliva and is edible.It breeds in colonies in caves, in a cleft or in a cliff or sometimes  on a building.These Swiflets often nest in pitch dark caves.They are able to do this by using echolocation, similar to bats.The bracket-shaped nest is white and translucent and is made entirely  of layers of hardened saliva attached to the rock. It measures about 6 cm across with a depth of 1.5 cm and a weight of about 14 grams.

Floating Nest

Building nest out in the water seems to be impracticable but it is a fact.Several birds build nests which are surrounded by water and even floating in water. Birds like Coots build build such type of nests having a foundation of vegetation, which reaches the ground below.Water birds like Grebes build nests which are basically floating on shallow water though they are often anchored at one or two points.However totally floating nest are bulid by Jacanas and Marsh Terns.The floating nests often sinks into the water while the bird
is sitting for incubation, but due to water proof eggs the chicks easily come out without any harm.

Hole Nest in Trees

Holes in dead or alive trees are a good option for  nesting by birds .Fewer birds like the woodpeckers and Barbets excavate their own holes in trees for nest building.Most tree hole nesters make use of the already existing holes in large or small trees.Most common hole nesters are Parrots, common Starlings, Hornbills, Owls, Indian rollers and some flycatchers.The nest in tree holes has the define advantage of protection from predators and weathers.Birds do modify the tree holes like lining with soft materials or mud plastering  in case of Horn bills. However the disadvantage is that due to warm and humid conditions inside the holes there is more chances of avian pests and nest parasites build up.It is a wonder that The Great Indian Hornbill nearly a meter long in size  likes to nest at 20-45 meters up the tree .This means it can only  nest in trees which have a diameter greater than 1-2 meters at that height. As the large trees are fast decreasing in the forests, the existence of the Great Hornbill is now a concern.

Hole Nest in Ground

Very few birds nest within holes in the ground.Nesting in hole  seems to be a better strategy than nesting in the open.We survey around 100,000 eggs and found that non-hole nesters averaged 48% rearing success while hole nesters averaged 74%.The main reasons seems to be eggs within holes in the ground are better protected against adverse environmental conditions and from predators.The hole nests can be  open onto a cliff edge or a vertical edge of a river bank,Road cuttings and those holes in relatively flat ground.Some birds dig the holes themselves and some uses the already existing holes.Birds making this types of nest are green bee eater and all king fishers.Green bee eaters make almost 1 meter hole in flat ground as well as edges to lay their eggs.

Cup nest with roof

The cup shaped nest with roof are more advanced than the usual cup nest.They are generally rounded or elliptical in shape and appears like a ball with a side entrance.This type of nest offer more protection to the eggs and chicks than a simple cup nest.These nests are built with grasses, leaves, fibers, small sticks etc.The inner is covered with soft materials to provide more comfort. Birds like Red munia, scally breasted munia, rufous bellied babbler, white munia, rufous winged bushlark etc build this types of nest. The photo above shows the nest of rufous bellied babbler.The nest is found in the vicinity of river Mahanadi in Sambalpur, Orissa, India.

Cup Nest

Fig: Cup nest built by Asian Paradise Flycatcher

The cup shape nest is the 3rd inorder of simple to complex nest In my previous posts I have given information about first two type of nests.The cup shaped nest is more advanced than simple twig nest.This is the most typical form of nest and found in abundant as most flycatchers build this type of nest.The cup shape nest have a clear inside as well as an outside and the inside is lined with softer materials for more comfort.This type of nest also provide more protection for both the eggs and chicks.They are generally build at the forked branch of a tree i.e either "V" or "Y" shaped branch.These nests are build with leaves, grasses, finer twigs sticked together with cobwebs. Birds like Asian Paradise Flycatcher, Monarch Flycatcher, Faintail Flycatcher, Humming birds, Bulbul,Oriole, Drongo etc build cup shaped nest.

Nesting Behaviour of Birds: No Nest

The most simple form of nest is no nest at all.Many birds donot build any nest.They either lay eggs directly on the bare ground or rock surface. Some make simple scrap on the ground to lay eggs. It is observed that birds who leaves the nest soon after hatching, generally build this type of nest or more accurately they don't need complex nest at all.Nightjars lay their two eggs directly onto the ground.Birds like Plovers, Pratincoles, Lapwings, Little tern make simple scrap to lay eggs. As the eggs are on open surface they generally camoufladge with their surrounding and there by protected from predators. The picture above is a Little ringed Plover Nest with egg on open ground near a river bank.

Sunbird, The Nesting

Nesting Season of Sunbird varies from February to June.Both the Purple and purple-rumped Sunbird has similar nesting behavior.I have discussed in detail how they build their nest in my post " Sunbird, The nest". The female generally lays 2 to 3 eggs of grayish color with brown spots.The female incubates the egg for a period of about two weeks.The young birds are fed by both the parents.The chicks feed almost 3 times more than their body weight.It is my personal observation that both the parent visit the nest almost 40 times in an hour to feed the chicks. Fledging period is almost 12 days.It is a great pleasure to watch the chicks coming out of the nest and jumping from branch to branch and the parents following them.

Black naped Monarch Flycatcher,The Nesting

The breeding season varies from June to August i.e. the rainy season.This may be due to the reason that plenty of food is vailable at that time.

The nest is a small conical cup shaped structure. It is made of fine grasses woven together plastered outside with cub webs and spider egg cases etc. It is built on a hanging twig of plants mostly at a height of 6 feet to 8 feet. The female mostly lays four numbers of eggs which are pale creamy pink color blotched with reddish brown. Both the parent incubate the egg for about 16 to 18 days. Fledging takes place in around 10 to 12 days, both the parents take care of the chicks.

The photographs are shot in Barapahad forest of Bargarh district in Orissa, India. I watch the chicks leaving the nest one by one. It is so thrilling that even I skipped my breakfast and launch to watch it. This is the beauty of bird watching. I don’t have any expensive camera. I used the pretty old Nikon F3 camera with a 200 mm lens.

Streaked Fantail Warbler, The Nesting

The nesting season varies from from June to September. Male birds are polygamous. the female builds a small nest deep in the grasses, often binding living leaves. The nest is a deep oblong pouch of vegetable matters glued together with cobwebs and attached with the blades of grass .It is generally built at a height of about 2 inches from the ground. It lays about 3-4 Nos of eggs. The eggs are whitish spotted with red & brown colour.It weighs about only one gram. The incubation period is about 12 to 14 days. Both the parents raise the young for a period of 10-12 days. The main food of this bird consists of Insects like grasshoppers and caterpillars etc.

The nest in the phot ograph is located in a waste land near Mahanadi river bed.I waited for long hours to take some feeding shots among wild grasses.I used a Nikon F3 camera and 200 mm lens.This is the wonder of bird watching.

Plain Prinia, The nesting

The nesting of Plain Prinia generally occurs between April to October.It build it's nest generally in a shrub or bush.The nest is woven with grass streaks and narrow at the top and broader towards the bottom.It lays 3 to 4 glossy light blue eggs with reddish brown spot and fine lines.Incubation takes place upto 12 days.Fledging also requires almost the same time.

Indian Robin, The Nesting

The nesting season of Indian robin is generally between March to June. It build it's nest under rock, earthen bank, tree holes , stone or brick wall of dwelling houses.The nest is built with rootlets, grass and softer materials. It lays 3 to 4 creamy white eggs blotched with brown color.Incubation is done for about 15 days by female only.Fledging takes place in around 10 days.The above picture is taken in the bank of river Mahanadi.It is built in a small hole in the earthen bank.I waited for hours to take this picture.You can watch the chicks behind the female who is trying to hide them.