Greater flamingos create simple nests out of the materials from their lagoons and lakes.
While some birds steal old nests from other birds or burrow into the ground, others construct their own homes. Africa is home to many birds that build their own nests, and those nests take on such distinctive shapes and forms that bird watchers can tell which birds are responsible for them.
African Red-Billed Hornbill
According to the Oregon Zoo, the African red-billed hornbill drills a hole in tree before it gets ready to lay eggs. Once the hole is big enough, the female gets into the hole and helps the male wall up most of the opening with mud, woodchips and bird droppings. A small slit in the hole allows the male to feed the female and the young. This type of home allows the hornbill to raise the chicks safely and without risks from predators before they are mature.
Flamingo
African flamingos make their nests on the ground out of mud, small stones, and feathers. The nest is shaped like a volcano with a circular mound with a depression at the top, where a single white egg is laid. There is no lining for the nest besides mud, and the flamingo chick is ready to leave the nest within a week.
Sociable Weaver
The sociable weaver is a small brown bird found in the Kalahari region in Southern Africa. A colony will produce one enormous nest that houses as many as 100 families. According to the San Diego Zoo, some of these nests have lasted for more than 100 years. The nests are made from large twigs, dry grass and straw, and resemble an untidy haystack lodged in the branches of a tall tree. The chambers are lined with fur, cotton, and other soft materials that will keep the chicks warm.
Saddle Billed Stork
Saddle billed storks, among the tallest storks in the world, build large, flat nests in the tops of tall trees. According Oiseaux-Birds.com, the nest is made out of reeds, sedges and mud, and it is constructed by both the male and the female stork.
Secretary Bird
According to the San Diego Zoo, mated pairs of secretary birds work together to build a nest that may be as wide as 8 feet across. The nest is constructed out of dung, grasses, animal fur, sticks and leaves and may take the pair six months or more to complete.
Crested Barbet
Crested Barbets dig nesting chambers out of sisal trees in a process that takes 18 days to a month. They prefer to build nests between 3 and 12 feet above the ground. These nests are often stolen by honeyguide birds.
Related posts
Swallows build their nests out of pellets of mud.Birds use a variety of materials to make their nests. Some use twigs and grasses to weave nests, while others nest in hollow trees or logs. Then th...
Flamingos use only mud to make a mound-shaped nest.Some birds are skilled builders, with the ability to construct their nest using mud as a primary resource. While some will build their nest entir...
Look for adult birds near the nest.Baby birds in Washington and the Northwestern United States are born during the spring and summer months and they look different than adult birds. They grow from...
African love birds, which are also simply called lovebirds, are small, hook-beaked parrots. African love birds all come from the genus Agapornis, of which there are nine species. Of these nine spe...
Birds nesting under or in the eaves of a house can cause problems.Birds roosting in the eaves of houses cause many problems. Their droppings are messy, the birds may damage property, the nests are...
