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Observe how birds change into adults

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Early summer is a good time for watching young birds as they take their first steps to becoming adults'.

In late spring, you may have seen flotillas of little ducklings being led across ponds or along rivers by their mother, and young Canadian geese picking their way through tall grass as they follow their parents across meadows.

Perching birds differ from waterfowl in that their young are fed in the nest and soon become as large, and often larger, than their parents. After they leave the nest, they can often be distinguished from the adults by their downy plumage (fluffy feathers) as well as begging behavior such as wide-open mouths. Young black-headed grosbeaks perch on a branch, fluff their feathers, and make a keening cry asking their parents to bring food. Likewise, young Western bluebirds sit fluffed up on wire fences with mouths wide open as their parents fly back and forth bringing them food.

Learning how to find food is an important first step. A family of house wrens may be found as a flock in a bush in Gansner Park seeking out food together while young wrens imitate the behavior of their parents nearby.

Young swallows may be seen sitting on utility wires presumably learning to catch insects by watching their parents hunt on the wing. Young American dippers can be seen near bridges along Spanish Creek standing on rocks out in the stream. Their parents go under the water, search for aquatic insects in the streambed and then bring them back for the young dippers. How long does it take the young dippers to learn to forage for food under the water when they can't see much of what their parents are doing?

Young birds can be more trusting than adults. You can move close to them and they will look at you as if to say "Who are you?" They may even come and perch on your hat or hand. Later they will learn that close encounters with other species can be dangerous.

Some juvenile birds have different plumage from adults. For example, young bald eagles do not have a white head or tail and look somewhat like golden eagles, but they have many white feathers in their armpits and on their chest. It takes a bald eagle four to five years to completely develop the distinctive white head and white tail of adults.

Young raptors high up in nests in tall trees have to take a risky and brave step in their first flight from the nest. For about a week prior to this they can be seen standing on the edge of the nest flapping their wings. They generally move out into the tree branches around their nest and are know as "branchlings." Presumably, all of their flapping about in the branches strengthens their wing muscles and makes their first flight less risky.

What do you do if you find a young perching bird on the ground showing some signs of distress? Put it on a branch where it is safer from predators and move away to give the parents the chance to find the baby bird and feed it. It is folklore that parent birds will reject their young if they are touched by humans, but it is prudent to use caution and hesitation when at - tempting to interfere in natural circumstances. If a bird is injured it is best to call a wildlife rehabilitator to help. Even this late in the summer, some birds are still nesting. Most of the Clark's and Western grebes on Lake Almanor just started to nest a week or two before Labor Day. These birds build floating nests out on the lake and have to wait until lake levels are suitable for the aquatic vegetation to grow abundant enough for them to build their nests. The young will be hatching soon, so keep your eyes peeled for young grebes perched on their parent's backs in the middle of the lake!

For information on Plumas Audubon bird walks, events, and other activities visit plumasaudubon.org, which is regularly updated (we are currently looking for a new webmaster -- hint, hint). Members and non-members alike are always invited and encouraged to participate in all public presentations, field trips and other Audubon events.

As always, we hope you can get out in the field and enjoy the "Birds of the Feather."



Copyright 2010 The Chester Progressive, Chester, California. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2011 The Chester Progressive Chester, California. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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