Nightingales in November (37 page)

Commonly rearing two broods on the continent, the relatively cool summers in Britain mean Nightingales here are only ever believed to practise a ‘one clutch' strategy. Having fledged earlier in the month, the families should by now be breaking up as it becomes every bird for itself while they stock up on food in preparation for their long southward journey. In
addition to bidding their young farewell, the adults will not only be dissolving their pair bond but also be actively moulting with a degree of urgency as the primary feathers must be replaced before migration. Aiming to leave for their African wintering quarters in August, it's thought that the entire wing moult of adult Nightingales may take no longer than 30 to 35 days. This contrasts sharply with resident British Robins, for example, which due to their more sedentary lifestyle can afford the luxury of replacing their flight feathers at double the amount time taken by the Nightingales. So skulking are Nightingales at this time that there are very few records of adult birds observed in the hand after the breeding season, but certainly one individual examined on 9 July had all of its first five primaries in active moult, with none of the replacement feathers being more than a third of their full length. Moulting at such a pace must have meant that this particular bird will have been little more than flightless at this time.

Having begun to moult even before their young fledged, the far more protracted feather replacement of adult Blue Tits will see their plumage not looking fresh again until at least September. The timing of Blue Tit breeding attempts of course varies enormously according to location, so while northern Blue Tits are still likely to be feeding young in the nest in late June, those young which fledged from southern Britain earlier in the month will already be severing the parental ties. Having successfully graduated from their two-week course in finding food and avoiding being eaten, the youngsters will now have to put what they learnt into practice!

Certainly in the southern half of Britain many first broods of Swallows should now be at the point of fledging. As few
nests fail completely, Barn Swallows usually have a healthy breeding record, with 90% of eggs laid going on to hatch and a further 80 to 90% of those hatching successfully managing to fledge. This means that a nest of four or five fully-feathered young, busily stretching, flapping and preening, can quickly become a hot and crowded place as departure day approaches. As the young prepare to leave, both the number and size of feeds by their parents are thought to slightly drop in order to encourage the birds out of the nest and onto a nearby roof, tree branch or overhead wire. Exactly when the young fledge depends on both the ability of their parents and the abundance of food, but tends to vary anywhere between 18 and 23 days, with an average time settling at around three weeks. Once one fledgling makes its bid for freedom, it tends to embolden the rest to leave too, with all the young usually departing on the same day. Certainly the first week of liberation will see the young staying close to the immediate vicinity of the nest site, while keeping away from any other Swallow families also busily fledging. Here the youngsters' strategy is to initially remain quietly perching until one of their parents approaches with food, whereupon they will instantly turn into full begging mode by fluttering their wings and calling vociferously to attract attention. Any Swallow youngsters partly obscured at this stage will need to ensure their calls are loud enough for the adults to find them.

After just a few days the youngsters will have gained sufficient confidence in the air to see them flying up to meet the parents, to receive their food quotas. As they learn to catch insects for themselves, many flight trainees will also hone their flying skills by using objects like grass stems or feathers, which are frequently dropped, before then being re-caught on the wing. Even a week after fledging, the young may return to the building where they nested, the vegetation close by or even the nest itself to roost each night, by which time they should also have mastered the
ability of finding and catching enough food to keep them sufficiently well fed. Only when reaching this point of independence will the youngsters then begin mixing with any of the other Swallows from neighbouring nests as the family structure slowly begins to break down. Relieved to be in a position to abdicate any responsibility towards their first brood will mean the adults can then turn their attention towards the laying of a second clutch. In a study of Danish Swallows, 70% of pairs that went on to lay a second clutch used exactly the same nest, and new nests were only more likely to be constructed in those cases where an infestation of mites had built up to such a level that it would have heavily impacted on the well-being of the chicks.

As the Swallows are preparing to lay their second brood, the short incubation period and quick fledging times of British Robins should mean that by late June many established pairs will already have fledged their second brood. It's thought that the majority of Robin pairs will only attempt a third clutch in an exceptional year, with most settling instead for just the two broods. Stopping at two will mean the female has no need to sidle away either to make a new nest or spring clean one of her previous efforts, but will enable her instead to be on hand to ensure as many youngsters as possible are carefully steered through to the point of independence in early July.

The end of June should also see any Kingfisher pairs that attempted to raise a second brood midway through their second incubation stint of the year. With the fledged youngsters from the first brood long since having been chased out of their parents' territory, a quiet normality will
have temporarily returned to the riverbank as the female once again carries out her sitting vigil. Brief respite from the dark monotony of the nest chamber will only come when she is called out by her mate for a stretch and an opportunity to catch a fish or two, before then disappearing back up the tunnel before her eggs begin to chill.

Unlike Kingfishers, where the adults drive away their newly fledged offspring no more than four or five days after leaving the sanctuary of their bank-side nest, Tawny Owl parents are willing to cut their delinquent offspring considerably more slack when it comes to ushering them towards self-sufficiency. Despite having climbed out of the nest cavity as early as May, the youngsters will in all probability still not yet have caught a single item for themselves, as they relentlessly beseech their parents to keep up the constant supply of food. In all likelihood it will be at least another month before these slow-coaches finally realise the only way to get ahead is by taking matters into their own talons. Despite flecks of down still being present around the facial disc and across the wing coverts, giving them a ‘frosty' look, the young will now begin to resemble their parents much more closely with each passing week.

Like the Tawny Owls, Peregrine Falcons are another species willing to give their young plenty of time to learn the complex array of techniques needed for hunting before the apron strings are finally cut later in the year. The Peregrine adolescents also seem much keener students than the lazy juvenile Tawnies and by now should have already developed all-important confidence in the air as they begin chasing each other, harrying passing gulls and practising the stoop
that will ultimately reap dividends when hunting for themselves. All these exercises might look like play to the uninitiated, but in fact are a vital step in both improving coordination and strengthening their flight muscles. At this stage some of the aerial flight lessons can be amazing to watch, particularly when the adults fly in with food. Streaking across the sky, the adult can often have all the screaming youngsters on its tail, with the successful juvenile either taking the prize by flipping underneath its parent to grasp the prey straight from the talons or catching the food in mid-air after being dropped by its diligent parent. As the young grow stronger and more able on the wing, the parents may well then decide to move away from the nest site during the day to escape their incessant begging, only returning either with food or to roost.