Dad, mom chestnut-backed chickadees feed babies April 2025

Описание: Chickadees hatched April 18, 2025. Dad first, then mom feed the chicks hatched 10 hours earlier. Live at    / @graychang99  

More info: https://ataridogdaze.com/science/bird...

Nesting activity timelines for prior years: https://ataridogdaze.com/science/bird...

Estimated 2025 timeline:

Egg laying: March 31 - April 4
Incubation: April 4-18
Hatching: April 18
Fledging: May 8?

Egg laying began on March 31 and incubation of 5 eggs started on April 4. Hatching April 18.

Oak titmouse live stream at    / @nestsfbay  

What's there to see in the nest, and when?

Nest building: After initial bursts of intense daytime activity during the first two days (about 300 trips the first day and 170 trips the second day), work on the nest slows down. The birds spend their time away from the nest when not actively working on it.

Night roosting: Once the nest is complete, the female may begin roosting on the nest at night, a sort of "practice" for egg-laying. She arrives at dusk and leaves at dawn, spending the whole day away from the nest, aside from adding a little more fluff as needed.

Egg laying: Eventually she starts laying eggs during night roosting, one per day in the early morning hours, around 5 AM, over 5 to 6 days. She covers the eggs with fluff to hide them, then spends the day away from the nest. It might not be possible to see the hidden eggs.

Incubation: The day before she lays the last egg, she starts incubating them, almost 24 hours per day, leaving only for short periods during the daytime (up to half an hour) to eat and drink. She leaves the eggs exposed while away. The male may bring food to her in the nest. When that happens, she gets up from the nest, flutters her wings, and takes the food at the entrance hole.

Hatching: The eggs develop only during incubation, so even though they are laid over a period of 5 or 6 days, the all hatch together in 1 or 2 days. Feeding starts immediately after hatching.

Feeding: Both parents feed the young almost constantly at daytime. Growth is very rapid, with noticeable change every day. The mother roosts over them at night until they develop feathers, after which they are left alone in the nest at night. The parents are run ragged with all the work and their feathers become worn. (They will molt and grow new feathers later in the year.) The young quickly reach the same size as their parents.

Fledging: The young leave the nest already knowing how to fly. The fly out of the entrance hole and do not return, and can no longer be seen in the yard.

Chestnut-backed chickadees live on the west coast of North America, from Alaska to Southern California. They are common in parks and suburbs of the San Francisco Bay Area, where I have this backyard nesting box. More about chestnut-backed chickadees at https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/C...

How to install a camera in a nesting box: https://ataridogdaze.com/science/bird...

YouTube channel:    / @graychang99