After about a week of daily monitoring the pileated nestlings finally grew large enough to appear at the opening to their nest cavity.
Then the vigil began. Waiting for an adult to bring food, and hoping to be quick enough to capture the moment, before it flew away again in search of nourishment for the new brood...
The time between feedings could range from fifteen minutes to over ninety minutes, making it difficult to predict when to be ready...
The nestlings demanded food constantly, keeping both the male and female adult busy...
Several times each day one of the adults would remove any fecal material that had accumulated...
As the young ones grew they became more aggressive and their sharp bills posed a danger to the parents...
Eventually the adults began landing farther from the nest opening and approaching cautiously...
After about seven days only the female chick was visible. It appeared that the male had fledged the day before...
Both adults continued to feed the female throughout the following day...
Although I was not present when either chick left the nest, I feel confident that both were successful...
It was an uncommon opportunity to observe and document this woodpecker family.
Thanks for visiting, be well, and come back soon.
Thanks for sharing these. I too have noticed the parents landing away from the nest hole and wondered why-- bet you're right.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photos -- well done!
ReplyDeleteCool!
ReplyDeleteYou shoot scene after scene of this unique bird family with a slick.
Greetings from Indonesia.
Amazing! Thanks for the story in pictures.
ReplyDelete