Laurie Elliott, age 9, of Newport, Virginia, for her question:
Do birds build new nests every year?
There are wrens and robins, swallows and starlings and hundreds of other birds in the world. Each kind of bird has his own ideas about the family nest. It may last just a few weeks or many, many years. But one thing is certain. Birds are just about the best parents in the world. They insist that the family nest is safe and comfortable for the babies. If the parents decide to use last year's nest to raise a new brood, they mend and repair it so that it is as good as new.
Most birds use their nests just to cradle the eggs and the growing babies. When the youngsters leave home, the parents also go away at least for a while. Some¬times they return later in the summer to raise another brood. The parents inspect the old nest carefully. They may decide to make a few repairs and use it again. If it is too shabby to mend, they may build a new nest very close by.
When these birds flock south for their winter vacations, they forget all about their summer nests. But a lot of them remember when they return next spring. Many parents return to last year's nest, perhaps because they like to remember the safe and pleasant place. But as a rule, the old nest is worn and weathered or perhaps a busy squirrel has torn it apart. Usually the old nest is not worth mending and the parents build a new one. Most of the smallish birds build new nests every spring, but they may use it to raise several families during the summer.
The barn swallow builds a very durable nest of mud and grass, often stuck under the eaves. When the parents return to it next spring, there is not much mending to do. Often they use the same nest year after year. The beauteous purple martin likes to nest in a man made bird house. If his human neighbors are friendly, he returns to it every year for the rest of his life. A martin house is a sort of apartment building. And last year's young birds often return to nest in a room near their parents.
Some birds use their nests as a permanent home. Young Mr. and Mrs. American Eagle plan a nest to last the rest of their lives. It may be by the shore, 90 feet high on a cliff, or high in a forest tree by a lake or river. The big shaggy nest is made from twigs and sticks and every year the owners repair it. Every night they return there to roost. Every day they leave to go after food and sometimes come home for lunch. Once each year, the nest is used to cradle the eggs and bring up the babies. But when the youngsters are strong enough to leave, the parent birds have the old family home to themselves again that is, until next year.
Grouse and certain other birds lay secret nests among the fallen leaves on the ground. There is not much left of these nests after the winter snows, so the birds build new ones. The nests that ducks and water birds build in the rushes do not last very long either. Many birds fly off to nest, crowded together on lonely islands. Every year they return to the same places. Some build simple nests of stones and a few hatch their eggs right on the bare ground.