Book 23, Question 42
How Do Baby Birds Learn to Fly?
Baby birds learn to fly by leaving the nest and practicing short hops and flights while their parents watch nearby.
Baby birds are born without the ability to fly. They have to learn. Let's watch how they do it! A baby bird's first flight might last only a few seconds.
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Quick answers
What are learning birds called?
Fledglings.
Is it normal to see them on the ground?
Yes. It's a normal part of growing up, and their parents are usually nearby.
How soon do juncos leave the nest?
Gray-headed Juncos leave after only 9 or 10 days.
More fun facts
- Young birds that leave the nest and are just learning to fly are called fledglings.
- Fledglings often wander and hop around on the ground. That is a normal part of growing up, and their parents are usually watching nearby.
- The longer chicks stay in a nest, the more likely a predator is to find it, so some songbird parents push their young out.
- Some parents stop feeding chicks in the nest and use food to lure them out, sometimes before they can fly.
- Gray-headed Juncos leave the nest after only 9 or 10 days, with wings that are not fully developed.
- Mountain Chickadees stay in their safer tree hole nests for about 22 days, so they can fly away when they leave.
- Juncos keep feeding their fledglings for a few days or even weeks after they leave the nest.
Questions kids ask
How can you tell a fledgling from a nestling?
A fledgling is bigger, almost fully covered in feathers and can hop. A nestling is small and nearly naked.