Nesting nest
IN our busy routine, we seldom pay attention to the wonders of nature around us; perhaps a little bird may be collecting some dry twigs or leaves that you just saw and forgot about it the next moment.
But kids, do you realise that these little creatures are really great engineers-cum-labourers? They use incredible skills and mastery in making amazing nests for their eggs. From tiny hummingbird nests to massive weaver nests which cover entire treetops, birds have the amazing skill of building nests in a variety of shapes and sizes. The nests can be built anywhere — on treetops, nooks in roofs, windowsills, in burrows in the ground or cute little cups perched high in tree branches.
Believe it or not, some birds even make difficult, yet marvellous entrance to their abode so that they do not become easy prey to big wild birds or animals. And there is also a bird which digs deep to make a burrow, lays eggs and covers it with soil so that no one can find it! And if it’s still doesn’t sound impressive to you than read about a bird which makes its nest from its saliva and the nest is edible!
Sociable weaver
THEIR nests are the largest built by a bird and often look like massive haystacks on trees. It looks more like an apartment complex and can house up to 400 sociable weavers. The thatched roof protects the birds in the South African or the Namibian deserts by keeping the heat out by day and insulating from cold at night. Since the birds use the structure for generations, a nest can be up to 100 years old — that is, if it doesn’t break the tree limb first.
However, in Kathmandu, Nepal, weaver birds make their nests from thin strips of leaves and reeds. These weavers weave together grass and strips of leaves to create their nests. The birds are colony breeders, so one tree is often home to multiple nests.
Malleefowl
THE nesting mound of the Australian malleefowl is among the biggest in the world. The record was 15 feet high and 35 feet across, according to Guinness World Records.
To make the mound, the male bird digs a hole and fills it with organic matter such as leaves, sticks and bark. He even turns the compost to speed decay, just like a gardener. When the compost heats up to 89 to 93 degrees, the female lays up to 18 eggs on it. Then these eggs are covered in sand.
During incubation, the male regulates the temperature of the mound using his beak like a thermometer. Despite all this devotion to the eggs, the malleefowl abandon their chicks as soon as they hatch.
Golden-headed cisticolas
THE golden-headed cisticola from Australia uses spider webs to sew a living canopy out of leaves. Since the bird’s nest is only 20 inches off the ground, the camouflage protects it from predators.
To make the canopy, the bird pierces the leaves with its needle-like beak and pulls a “thread” through to hold them together. This cosy cover anchors the nest so that it stays hidden as the plant grows.
Gyrfalcon
IT is a large white falcon that nests in cliffs in the Arctic. They use the same depression or scrape in the rock generation after generation. In 2009, researchers from the University of Oxford did radiocarbon dating on a Gyrfalcon nest and found that it was around 2,500 years old! Three other nests were over 1,000 years old, and fragments of gyrfalcon feathers were 600 years old. The birds have been continually using the nest since the Roman era.
THE bird, rufous hornero is nicknamed in South America as an ovenbird, because of how it makes its nest. The bird collects mud and manure and piles it into an upside-down bowl on a tree branch. The sun bakes the mud dry, making a sturdy structure resembling a clay oven.
Since the birds build a new nest for every brood, there are often several mud nests in a row on the same branch, all made by the same bird!
Black kites
BLACK KITES in Europe have adapted to human habits by decorating their nests with strips of white plastic.
While some scientists believe this is to camouflage the eggs, new research suggests that the plastic is really there to show off for other black kites! According to this theory, black kites view trash as a statement of power, like what it means to humans to own a grand house.
Bald eagle
IN true American style, bald eagles make nests far bigger than their needs would seem to indicate. At first, the eagles make smaller nests, or aeries, 50 to 125 feet above the ground by layering branches and sticks in a triangular pattern. Every year, they add more to the nest until it becomes big enough for a human to sit on.
The largest bird nest on record was a bald eagle nest found in St Petersburg, Florida, in 1963. It was 10 feet wide and 20 feet deep!
Hummingbirds
THEIR nests are so small that it’s easy to mistake them for knots in the trees. In fact, the smallest nest in the world is the bee hummingbird’s nest, which is just over an inch wide!
The hummingbird makes its cup-shaped nest by weaving spider webs with feathers and leaves to make it strong and stretchy, then covering the outside with lichen. The bird then lays two eggs, each the size of a coffee bean, inside.
THEY are the most widespread species of swallows in the world. They build cup nests from mud pellets on the sides of structures like barns, which is how they earned their name.
Swiftlet’s edible-nest
IN the caves of Southeast Asia, edible-nest swiftlets make cliffside nests out of layers of their own spit. The saliva sticks to the rock and hardens in a bracket shape that the bird uses to lay its eggs.
The nests are also a sought-after delicacy for bird’s nest soup. They have no flavour and no nutritional content, but this doesn’t prevent them from being one of the most expensive foods in the world. People are so crazy for it that many countries regulate the bird nest industry to keep the swiftlet from dying out.
Montezuma oropendola
THESE birds from Central America weave pendulous nests out of vines and banana fibres. The nests can be three to six feet long and look like a ball hanging in a stocking. Since the birds live in colonies, there can be up to 150 of these nests extended from one tree, although usually it’s more like 30.
The female takes nine to 11 days to make her nest. The male often watches her work and if he doesn’t like what he sees, he’ll tear it apart and make her start over — bad, bad, bird!
European penduline
THESE birds build elaborate hanging nests. The nests are tightly woven and so strong that they’ve been used as purses and children’s shoes.