A Flycatcher adventure

The Great Crested Flycatcher is a common summer resident across most of  eastern USA into southern Canada. Despite its loud and distinctive calls, it is rather reclusive and hard to find, high in treetops. A large flycatcher, it has a long bill, rusty-red wing and tail feathers and yellow undersides. It is the only flycatcher in the eastern USA which utilizes nest holes.

My best photo of one, until this week, was in Florida, back in 2011:

Here in Connecticut I photographed a pair exploring an exhaust vent with an unprotected opening, high on the rear exterior wall of our residence. We thought that the frequent operation of the fan would discourage them. However, they persisted until it was obvious that they had brought in much nesting material which needed to be removed before replacing the broken cover. It is their habit to rapidly fill any nesting cavity almost to the entry hole and include all manner of trash. If available, shed snake skins are included and may even protrude from the nest hole, possibly effective  in deterring predation.*

This week, while tending to the garden directly beneath the opening, our granddaughters heard soft high-pitched calls coming from under the spreading leaves of a daylily. They discovered four newly-hatched chicks of the species.  

Returning them to the nest was impossible because the slope of the terrain and lack of an appropriate ladder. Graci, the older of our granddaughters took charge of the situation. She called a local wildlife rehabilitation line and followed their advice, to put the chicks in a cardboard box with a towel and place them as near as possible to the nest, in hopes that the parents would feed them. 

Since they were cold she added a sock filled with a cup of dry rice, heated in the microwave for 30 seconds. It was pleasantly warm. The chicks began calling and begging to be fed. Sure enough, the parents came to feed them almost immediately after they were placed in the garden. I took photos from a second floor window:

We were amazed when one of the adults brought in a dragonfly which was almost the same length as the chick:

I was amazed to see the last of the dragonfly disappear into the baby's gullet:

The eyes of the chicks will not open until they are about 5 days old. They normally do not fledge until they are two weeks of age. One of the four was quite listless the entire time and never begged to be fed. The approach of nightfall presented a dilemma. We could not leave the box on the ground for predators to find. 

Before dark, after the adult flycatchers had disappeared, we moved them in the box to a table under the covered patio. For extra safety, Graci placed a chair on the table to provide even greater elevation:

She positioned it just outside my bedroom window so that I could keep an eye on it:

We included the warm sock, as the overnight temperature was expected to drop below 60 degrees. It actually dipped to 57°F  (13.9°C). Early the next morning I found that the weaker nestling had perished. The other three were cold and nearly unresponsive. Graci brought them inside and after warming them up for a few minutes they began to beg for food. She fed them live mealworms and rather than place them on the ground we decided to see if the parents would return to feed them on the patio.

An adult perched on one of the chairs soon after I exited the patio. I presume it was  responding to the calls of the nestlings.

Soon, both adults visited the new location and started bringing in food for the chicks, Light was poor and I was shooting through the windows. They continued feeding and removing excrement throughout the day.

That night we decided it was best to bring the chicks inside the house to avoid the chill and threat of rain. It was a good move. They slept all night with the towel covering the box and all three  woke up hungry and begging. I warmed up the rice-filled sock and placed the box back on the chair atop the table. The adults immediately began feeding them. I think it is unusual for acavity-nesting bird to so readily accept an open nest. Of course, the instinct to nurture and protect their offspring is strong indeed.

As of this morning, the fourth day since taking charge of the baby flycatchers, all is going well. The three chicks are thriving. Doting parents were waiting for them before sunrise as I brought them out to the patio after spending a second night inside our home. The chicks immediately began calling. Just now, a Gray Squirrel ventured very close to the patio. One of the adult flycatchers attacked the squirrel and appeared to peck its back. The squirrel hastily retreated.     

A word of caution. Generally, you should not try to capture a baby bird which appears to have been abandoned by its parents. If able to walk or run it very likely is a fledgling which will be fed periodically by its parents and have survival instincts to protect it for a few days before it takes flight. If it is a younger naked or fluffy nestling it rarely may be possible to return it to the nest if it is accessible and not damaged. Follow Graci's example and call a wildlife rehabilitator for guidance. For more information see: When You Should—and Should Not—Rescue Baby Birds

Sunset over Hartford on June 20:

Morning view of Hartford earlier this week through residual smoke from the Canadian forest fires:

Reflection on the lake

REFERENCE: Birds of the World (The Cornell Lab of Ornithology):

The potential for snakeskin to deter nest predation was first tested experimentally in nest boxes in Florida (KEM); addition of snakeskins to Great Crested Flycatcher nest boxes during Mar-Apr subsequently repelled southern flying squirrels from reoccupying the nest boxes; snakeskins placed in artificial nests in the same nest boxes during Jun reduced the frequency of predation by small mammals. These findings suggest use of snakeskin by the species may be adaptive, at least in this locality where flying squirrels are significant nest predators (Miller 2002, Miller and Leonard 2010). However, some have interpreted this behavior as nothing more than an affinity for shiny and wrinkly items, given that fragments of birch (Betula sp.) bark, onion skins, cellophane, plastic wrappers and other trash are also routinely used in the nest (Whittle 1927b: 263).

This week's header: Sunset over Hartford

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Linking to:

Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

Garden Affair

All Seasons

Image-in-ing

Nature Notes

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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