In the last few weeks, our team has started visiting both old and new sites to check out what their resident Black Phoebes are up to. Although existing knowledge about Black Phoebes would suggest that it’s still a bit early to see any nesting behavior, we had a hunch that things might be starting early this year! The weather in the Sacramento region has been wet and wild, but also pretty mild in terms of temperature this winter. By promoting plant growth and insect activity (has everyone else been getting eaten alive by mosquitos all winter??), these conditions might allow non-migratory birds like Black Phoebes to get a head-start on nesting.
We started our 2024 field season with some special one-time-only activities. Specifically, we had the privilege of installing over two-dozen nesting structures called “nest shelves” along the lower American River in Sacramento. Nest shelves are very similar to traditional nest boxes in terms of the function that they serve (providing wild birds a place to build a nest), but they have an alternative design that best meets the needs of Black Phoebes and other species like Eastern Phoebes and Barn Swallows which build similar nests. Our installation days were the culmination of many months of planning and would not have been possible with the eager support of Sacramento County Regional Parks or, most importantly, the knowledge, time and materials graciously given to us by local nest box construction expert Jack Donaldson. Now that our nest shelves are out among the trees and shrubs in the American River Parkway, we wait with bated breath for Black Phoebe moms and dads to notice them and decide they’ll make a good home for their nestlings. If any pairs do use these structures, it’ll be the first time a Black Phoebe has been documented doing so!
Our team is now getting into the flow of regular scouting visits to each of our sites, and we have indeed come across some very early birds. Even before it was March, we were shocked to see one Black Phoebe mom sprucing up a nest under a busy overpass that she likely used last year. In fact, we remembered her nest vividly as it taunted us last year by being high enough off the ground that even our extension ladders would have no chance of reaching. Needless to say, we would have loved for her to choose a new home (maybe even one of our state-of-the-art nest shelves?) this time around. Apart from this vertically-inclined mom, we have spotted several other pairs already hard at work building a new nest from scratch or making critical repairs to old nests that made it through the winter. Thankfully, though, the majority of Black Phoebes, including many of our color-banded moms from last year, don’t seem to be in a hurry and are still working on their relationships or looking for good places to build.
As Phoebe activity increases, so will our team’s. The next milestone for this field season will be the start of UC Davis’s spring quarter at the beginning of April. At that point, we will have field activities going nearly every day of the week, and we will have a new cohort of undergraduate field technicians (check out the updates to our page “The Project Phoebe Team” under “About Project Phoebe” to get to know the new and returning members). In the meantime, you can help out our team’s scouting efforts by keeping an eye out for nesting Phoebes in Davis, Woodland, West Sacramento and Sacramento. If you spot anything at all that you think we should come check out, don’t hesitate to let us know through the “Report a Phoebe or Nest sighting” form linked at the top of our website. Thank you, and we hope to see you in a park or preserve near you!
