As
dusk comes on each night, the last song is heard, the last visit to
the feeder is made; then our songbirds fly off to sleep the night
away. Quiet settles in, until the various nocturnal birds—owls and
whippoorwills—take up night duty and fill the woods with their
calls.
I
know that diurnal birds find a place to sleep—a place that needs to
be as safe from predators as possible. But where? I've never seen a
cardinal or a chickadee asleep at night. I don't go around with a
flashlight trying to spot them snoozing, but I've often wondered
where they go to doze. When parents are brooding chicks, I'm sure
they constantly cover their babies to protect them, so at least one
parent passes the night on the nest; but how about the rest of the
year, when babies are not a concern?
Once
the nesting season is over, birds will usually abandon the nest,
since it is no longer needed, but it also is coated with droppings
and scattered feathers, that attract predators and parasites; so it
makes sense to stay away from it. So again, I wonder, where do they
camp out at night?
A
little research gave me some general answers. I have yet to actually
spot one of our birds sleeping the night away, safe in its niche; but
now I know where some of them might be found. Songbirds find various
kinds of perches for sleep. Their main objective is to avoid
nighttime predators—owls, raccoons, and other nocturnal
carnivores—and to preserve body heat; so they survive to sing and
find bugs (or my sunflower seeds) the next day. Some will seek
various kinds of cavities or nooks where a large predator will not be
able to get at them. Some may sleep in a location where an
approaching predator must make noise or create disturbing vibrations
that alert them of danger. (Say, on a flimsy branch that supports
them securely, but a perch that a larger critter will shake.) They
may also cluster in large flocks—giving them safety in numbers,
while a few sentries on the edges stay awake through the night.
More
on bird snoozing next time...
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