Birding

Mistletoebird breeding update

August 7, 2022 by Clare M No Comments

I thought I should update you all on the Mistletoebirds that are nesting close to home, because I walk by the nest every day. Since I wrote about the nest a couple of weeks ago it has become a lot more obvious with the loss of leaves on the tree.

Tree with Mistletoebird nest

Until very recently I had only seen the female Mistletoebird sitting in the nest with her head sticking out or on a nearby tree, which also has no leaves. When she is out of the nest she seems to like to have a bit of a stretch and then goes back to sit on the eggs.

Female Mistletoebird stretching before going back to the nest

The male Mistletoebird has not had a lot to do so far and remains nearby. He often lands high up in a nearby tree and looks down. He will have to start to pull his weight once the chicks start demanding food! He is supposed to help out at that stage of the breeding process.

Male Mistletoebird

When the female Mistletoebird returns to the nest she dives straight in and then turns around and faces outwards. I suspect the fact that the nest is made mostly of cobwebs means it is quite flexible! We are still having cool nights, so she has the perfect place to be!

Diving in and turned around!

Female Mistletoebird snug in her nest

Over the last couple of days I have observed a change in the female Mistletoebird‘s behaviour when she returns to the nest. She now stops at the entrance and is clearly feeding chicks, but they must be only recently hatched and I have not yet been able to establish how many there are.

Female Mistletoebird at the nest

I don’t doubt it won’t be too long before there is no longer room for the female Mistletoebird to fit in the nest with her young. I am yet to observe the male Mistletoebird feed the young, but I also walk slowly by and don’t spend much time in the area. I am hopeful that I might be able to establish how many young there are before they leave the nest. However, with the recent loss of leaves on some of the surrounding trees they should be quite visible when they do emerge! It would appear that it will be quite a tight fit as they grow, but they won’t be getting cold in there!

I hope to update you again soon…..

Written by Clare M

Clare and her husband, Grant, have lived permanently in Broome, Western Australia since 1999 after living in various outback locations around Western Australia and Darwin. She has lived in the Middle East and the United States and traveled extensively in Europe. She monitors Pied Oystercatchers breeding along a 23km stretch of Broome's coastline by bicycle and on foot. She chooses not to participate in social media, but rather wander off into the bush for peace and tranquility. Thankfully she can write posts in advance and get away from technology!