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After a successful courtship, a bird pair will mate and begin the process of having a family. Once the nest has been built and they have settled down, they enter what is commonly called the breeding phase. This breeding phase is actually broken down into three sub-phases.
The first of these phases is the egg laying and incubation. This is the most perilous stage of all as it can be short circuited in so many ways.
Eggs are a fantastic source of nutrients. And if the nest is left unprotected for any period of time, it is likely to be raided by predators in search of an easy meal. This means that the parents must watch diligently over the eggs to protect them.
In addition, incubation is also important. If the temperature of the egg is too cold, it may never hatch. For most species, this means one of the bird pair must always be ready to sit on the egg where the heat of their body can keep the egg warm. In some species, this is the duty of the female. In others, the male and female will trade off. And in rare instances, the birds will actually bury the eggs in soil and let the soil do most of the incubation work.
The second phase is called the nestling period. This is the period of time when the newly hatched young are spending all of their time in the nests. They are pretty much defenseless at this stage and rely one hundred percent on their parents to keep them alive and well. In most species, the male and female will alternate the duties of scrounging for food and bringing it back to the nest where it can be fed to the nestlings.
The final phase of breeding is the fledgling period. The young are now anxious to leave the nest and start to explore the surrounding environments. In the beginning they will do this with their parents keeping a close eye on them. They will follow the parents and do their best to imitate them until they become proficient on their own at digging up insects and finding other food sources.
When they can do all of this on their own and are ready to leave the nest, the fledgling period has ended. They can now go off on their own as an independent adult and repeat the cycle again with a family of their own.
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