Black Phoebe (nest w/young)
Sayornis nigricans
This nest with young was found in the protection of a road culvert adjacent to Sycamore Creek, Mazatzal Mts., Maricopa Co., Arizona, USA. 16 May 2010.
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Where
there is shallow water, be it at the edge of a lake or pond or in moist canyon
bottoms where sycamore trees flourish, Black Phoebes are common residents from
spring through autumn. Phoebes are flycatchers that specialize on the winged
stages of aquatic insects. From a strategic vantage point they scan the water
surface and the air above for meals on the wing. Once a target is identified
the black and white hunter swoops toward it and captures it mid-flight and
returns to its original perch. Sometimes they will snatch an insect or even a
small fish straight from the water.
The nest is constructed from fresh mud and strands of dry grass: avian adobe. The mud is plastered to a near verticle surface such as a cliff or drainage culvert. There the nest is out of the rain and rather inaccessible to predators like snakes and ringtails.