Tuesday afternoon, my niece and I went out birdwatching in the back fields. Halfway down the trail we came across a trio of Eastern Kingbird fledglings, noisily demanding morsels from the busy adult birds. No keening or mewling from these youngsters — already they’d developed the sharp, distinctive voices of their parents. It’s the only manner in which Kingbirds will communicate: YELL IT.
Lynn takes a peek through the scope. She has a little trouble keeping just the one eye closed.
Kingbirds have the honour of being dubbed Tyrannus tyrannus, the Tyrant of Tyrants. They are highly aggressive during the breeding season, and any feathered foe from jays to eagles is fair game. Most of them respond appropriately: tuck tail and flee. Human observers who overstep their bounds aren’t always immune from such treatment either, and as such the two of us kept our distance.
Kingbird chicks have a relatively long period of dependency for a songbird, as the parents will continue to provide for them for another two to five weeks after fledging. Because of this, pairs often raise only one brood per season. I suspect an extended military-style training regiment for the young birds is the explanation for such reliance. How else does such a small creature learn to single-handedly terrorize an entire neighbourhood of predators and egg-snatchers?
Gosh….I loved this post! (Of course, I love all your posts). Your sketches are beautiful–and how wonderful you got to spend the day birding with your niece. I hope you’ve inspired her to follow birds as you do. I also enjoyed reading your narrative–informative and fun reading!
My first visit here, and I really enjoyed the sketches. I cant draw to save my life, and so I treasured these even more.
I had not heard of these birds either….I dont think I want to mess with them!