Nesting Season
Springtime in the Foothills is a kaleidoscope of activity. The wind dances, alternating between gentle warmth and stinging ice. Melting snow creates ephemeral streams that trace new pathways across the landscape. Insects and other invertebrates that have overwintered in the soil, leaf litter, and bark of the maple and Gambel oak stands re-emerge to resume their lives. Utah is home to over 900 species of bees and these leave their solitary holes to take advantage of the first spring flowers. Migratory songbirds that left months ago return to fill the air with their song and the trees with their energetic forms. Spring parsley, happiest basking on the sunny south-facing slopes, shows off their yellow blossoms. Spring beauties, sometimes white, sometimes pink, poke out from the leaves in the shadier areas of the Foothills. With everything that is happening, it is easy to overlook a major undertaking that happens every spring: nest-building by birds.
Now that it’s April, courtship and nesting are well underway. The first black-capped chickadees have probably already fledged and left the nest. Chickadees are cavity nesters, meaning they clean out pre-existent holes in trees and build their nests inside. This added protection for their eggs and nestlings means they can begin nesting earlier in the year.
Nest-building outside of cavities is a complicated task that individuals need to practice. Different species construct different nest shapes and use different materials. For example, hummingbirds use delicate materials including plant fibers (think willow and cottonwood fluff), bits of leaves, lichens, and spider silk. Black-billed magpies build a giant globe of sticks, with a smaller cup inside made of mud, twigs, plants, and any fur or hair they can find. First-time nest-builders will understandably build something rather more chaotic than beautiful, and observing experienced nest-builders helps youngsters learn how to build a nest properly. A lot of other animals, like squirrels and bees, build nests as well, so if you’re interested in nest-building, keep your eyes open.
By Maria Goller
Chickadees are cavity nesters
