Habitat Engineering: Nest Building
Birds build nests to create a safe and warm place to raise their nestlings (baby birds)!
In this activity, you are going to build a bird's nest using only discovered materials. Try our Outdoor Scavenger Hunt Bingo to find all your nest materials! Be sure to only use found materials, that is part of the challenge!
Let’s Begin!
Materials
Sticks
Grass or straw
Flowers
Feathers
Dirt + water
Fur
String
Bark
Paper
Recycled Materials (things left behind by humans)
Directions:
Mix the dirt with water to make mud to help your nest stay together.
Build the nest frame. Lay the bigger tree branches and twigs around in a circle formation.
Using tall grass or string, tie the twigs together. Little scientists may need help with this step, but it can be awesome practice for building shoe-tying skills!
Using your hands, pat mud around the outside of your nest.
While the mud is wet, weaving tall grass, hay, or fallen leaves into the nest walls to fill in the gaps
Use additional materials like feathers and grass to make a comfortable nest!
Science Background
From webs and hives, to dams and burrows, animal architects are busy at work all around us. Our backyard besties, such as birds, bees and spiders, have a huge impact on human life. A 2016 report by Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services suggests that these animals “pollinate nearly 90 percent of the world’s plants and at least 75 percent of food crops.” We need birds, pollinators, and insects for biofuels, construction materials, and medicine. Unfortunately, these animals are facing major extinction, in part, due to lost habitation.
The good news is, humans can help! In this activity, we explored habitat engineering and we learned that build a nest is hard work! Without materials like glue, building nests can be really tricky. It requires patience and hard work. Unlike humans, birds don't even have hands. They use their beaks to place and arrange the materials for their nests. The shape and structure of their beaks allow birds to manipulate delicate materials, tucking and weaving into tight gaps, building intricately woven nests.
When we build nests and place them in safe places, we can protect birds from extinction!
Want to extend this outdoor science adventure? Try the other nest-building activities in this lesson!
