This is the first segment in what will be a regular miniseries on NESTS. I started writing a post covering all of the most interesting branches of this fascinating subject, and it quickly began morphing into a dissertation of epic proportions. I instead decided to break things up into several shorter bite-sized posts that will be presented every three weeks until my nesting knowledge is thoroughly exhausted. Right now I think I’ve got about 7 posts in me. Maybe 8. So get ready.
Admittedly, I am obsessed with birds. I just counted and we have no less than 34 bird decorations perched on surfaces throughout the house. That number is rather shocking, actually. Especially considering I did a major thinning out of my collection after Micky and I first moved in together and he turned to me and said, “Wow. There really are a lot of birds in here.”
So now that you know I’m a bona fide bird lady, you can probably imagine my excitement over a review I read recently in the New York Times for a book called Avian Architecture: How Birds Design, Engineer, and Build by Peter Goodfellow.
According to my online research (I've already put this bad boy on my Christmas list), the book provides 300 detailed step-by-step illustrations of the nest-building process for over 100 species, breaking down the different kinds of nests by type: scrape, hole, platform, aquatic, mud, mound, cup or dome, and hanging nests. I was interested to learn that scrape nests, probably the variety that takes the least amount of effort to make, are not much more than a dimple in the ground, without any soft lining, and no real concern with protection from predators. Then, of course, there are the iconic cup-shaped nests that we all know and love:
I’ve always been fascinated by birds like the Ruby-throated Hummingbird for the way they use gathered cobwebs as the glue that holds the tufts of dandelion and thistle down together in their nests:
 |
| This haughty little fellow was photographed by the Delaware Nature Society |
 |
| An insider's view found on Le Petit Cadeau |
So not only are these lovely flights of fancy decked out in beautiful feathers with their own distinctive markings (there’s something startlingly beautiful about a pigeon when you see that flash of iridescent feathers as they swivel their necks, am I right, folks?), but amazingly each species is also an ingenious designer and constructor of a perfect, unique home to keep their burgeoning young safe and warm.
Next up in the NESTING series: BEEEEES!
No comments:
Post a Comment