Dipper nesting

As songbirds go, the dipper is a maverick: it flies underwater to forage on the bed of cold and turbulent mountain streams. It takes the cold and wet in its stride.

Yet, when it builds its nest, the dipper seeks shelter and comfort. The nest is a dome with the opening on the side, so it is one of the few covered bird nests. There is the added protection from weather by (often) building the nest on the girders under a bridge. The spot chosen for this nest is high above the creek in a location inaccessible to land predators. Joanne Siderius has pointed out that the dipper couple had just built this nest because last year’s was destroyed (removed?) over the winter.

Here, the male is bringing food to the female while she incubates the eggs (Derek Kite’s picture).

When not foraging or bringing food to the nest, the male stands guard below it on a rock in the creek.

Derek Kite’s picture of the feeding is used with permission.