Bird chicks seem to like to be looked after by their parents long after such care is needed.
Last year, I posted pictures of osprey parents coaxing their chicks to go off on their own: It’s time you went. Today, flicker parents seemed to drive off their chick. I am not sure this is what was happening, but for an hour or so, adults were not only blocking access to the nest, but gently easing a fledged chick farther and farther from it.
This picture of a flicker chick in the nest cavity was taken a week ago by my grandson, Finn. The cavity is in a piling at the end of a long ramp to a dock.
This morning, the chick was out of the nest and on the ramp to the dock. For an hour or so, an adult (female, left) blocked repeated attempts by the chick (right) to move towards the nest.
The process of driving the chick off to fend for itself took place on the surface, in the air, and any handy perch. Here, the chick (lower left) is on roof of a nearby gazebo, while a male adult on the finial blocked its ability to fly off—or that is what appeared to be happening. As is evident from the picture, these are Red-shafted Northern Flickers.
Alistair, as always you open to us and share with us a possible, and usually, the probable, understanding of what is taking place before our eyes. Thank you for being so willing to share your knowledge with us. Fr. Jim
P.S. Please keep me on your mailing list. JJR
Dick Cannings tells me that the flickers in the final two pictures are all adults. So, apparently, the nesting flickers were actually driving off an intruder.