Page 94 - BBC Wildlife Volume 36 #06

Q A
Q&
THE PANEL

MIKE TOMS
Ornitholog gist

SARAH MCPHERSON
Q&A editor

WWW.DISCOVERWILDLIFE.COM

STUART BLACKMAN Q BIRDS
Science writer
How do kingfishers

excavate their
AMY-JANE BEER
Naturalist and author

nesting burrows?

POLLY PULLAR
A
Naturalist and author For a small bird such as a kingfisher, digging out a
nesting burrow that can be up to 130cm in length is a
Herculean task. A pair works on the burrow together,
choosing a steep or vertical bank situated over water.
The male starts things off by flying at a spot on the
LIZ KALAUGHER bank and attempting to loosen the soil with his beak.
Author of Furry Logic
g
y
These initial attempts can be haphazard, but once the
birds have removed sufficient soil to gain a foothold,
they can more easily perch and peck at the soil in a
woodpecker-like manner. Work continues on and off
throughout the day, with the pair taking it in turns to
RICHARD JONES Kingfisher: Steve Y oung/Getty; seal: Patricio Rob es Gil/Minden/FLPA; mushroom: Nathan Gr ith/Getty; snail: Laurent Geslin/naturepl.com dig and with the excavating bird always watched over
Entomologist
by its mate. The tunnel is just 5cm wide, so a bird
has to reverse out, kicking the soil backwards with
its feet. Only when a kingfisher exits head-first
does it mean the job is nearly finished and
the nesting chamber is taking shape. The
JON TENNANT
g
Palaeontologist whole process takes a couple of weeks,
so it is little wonder that nesting
burrows are often used again
the following year.
Mike Toms
JAMES FAIR
Wildlife jjournalist

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