BirdNote; Father Birds

BirdNote®

Father Birds

Written by Ellen Blackstone

This is BirdNote!

It’s Father’s Day, so let’s take a look at avian “fatherhood.”

[Anna’s Hummingbird wing sounds] After his initial involvement, the male hummingbird has nothing more to do with the family. In fact, the female may move away from his territory, because he can be so aggressive [Anna’s Hummingbird wing sounds].

Then, there’s the Peregrine Falcon father, which shares family duties almost equally with the mother [Cakking of a Peregrine]. He helps incubate the eggs. And after the young hatch, he brings food for the entire family for three weeks. When the young Peregrines fledge, Dad is right there with Mom, coaxing them to fly and teaching them to hunt on the wing.

[Cakking of a Peregrine]

But the Emu of Australia… that’s the drum-like sound you’re hearing…[Call of an Emu] Now, there’s a father! [Call of an Emu] The male Emu makes the nest. The female lays her eggs, but then abandons the male, to begin again elsewhere. The male remains on the eggs for nearly two months, eating and drinking almost nothing, never leaving the nest for any reason. And the father may stay with the young emus for up to two years [Call of an Emu].

BirdNote wishes a happy day to all the fathers out there, feathered and otherwise. For BirdNote.org, I’m Michael Stein.

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Bird audio provided by The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Anna’s Hummingbird wing hum recorded by A.A. Allen. Peregrine Falcon call recorded by G. Vyn.

Audio of Emu foraging recorded and provided by David Stewart, www.naturesound.com.au. (Emu: Dromaius novaehollandiae)

Producer: John Kessler

Theme music composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.

Executive Producer: Chris Peterson

© 2012 Tune In to Nature.org June 2012/2019 Narrator: Michael Stein

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