It’s especially exciting to see interactions between an adult and a new fledgling, like these Eastern Bluebirds (photo by Karen Patterson). The post-fledging period is characterized by one or both adults protecting their fledglings and providing supplemental foods for them as they learn to forage for preferred foods on their own, and learn to fly (photo by Paul Konrad).

Even as migration is drawing down, we are seeing new fledglings and enjoying the chance to see interactions between adults and fledglings. Of course, if adults bring fledglings to your feeding station and water feature, you will appreciate the behavior of the family group even more. We all learn more about birds through our observations, and the chance to see a variety of nesting birds feed, protect, and teach fledglings through the early summer months is one of the reasons we attract birds to our yards through our landscaping and gardening efforts, and by feeding and watering.

Some early nesting birds have already raised nestlings to the fledging stage, and while it’s easy to imagine that when young birds leave the nest – fledge – they are on their own. But that’s not the case. The “post-fledging period” is a critical stage in the development of young birds when they learn to fly. Learning to fly is plenty to take on just after leaving the security of a nest, but fledglings also must learn about how to find food on their own, learn what constitutes danger, and understand how to navigate their environment safely and successfully.

An important aspect of this risky post-fledging period is that one or both adults protect their young and provide supplemental foods for them – fledglings are rarely out of sight of the adults for the first days and weeks after leaving the nest. This fledgling learning period is paramount to the survival of young birds, but young birds learn quickly and have some instinctive abilities and understanding. Even if a bird that has just left the nest can’t fly yet, never fear; it will be flying quite well in a few hours, or in a day or so – it’s all part of the post-fledging process.

When you have a chance to watch new fledglings, it’s amazing to see how quickly young songbirds learn to fly. Fledglings will also follow one of the adults to beg for food and they will learn how and where to find food in the process. While there may be some learning involved, many birds have inborn behaviors, also known as innate behaviors, that help them to quickly progress through the post-fledging period with oversight from an adult or the adult pair. The post-fledging period may last a few days in smaller birds, including many familiar songbirds; but it may last a few weeks in others, and it actually continues for months in larger birds such as waterfowl, cranes, raptors, and some others.

Then too, some young birds actually leave the nest within a day of hatching. These hatchlings, like young Killdeer, are “precocial” and can stand, walk, run, and hide soon after hatching; but they can’t fly. Same for young grouse and pheasants, but young ducklings and goslings can swim and dive under water, but they can’t fly. All these precocial hatchlings stay close to one or both of their attentive parents.

Enjoy observing the young birds that pass through your yard, and have faith to let nature take its course. It’s important to recognize that these young birds don’t need human “help.” Encourage other people, including children, not to disturb young birds that appear in our yards, neighborhoods, local parks, and rural areas – let nature persevere. (Actually, it’s so important that we leave birds on their own that it’s unlawful to handle native wild birds, including fledglings and hatchlings.) However, one thing you can do to help these young birds is to keep cats in the house, and gently encourage other people to do the same.

Occasionally, a nestling will leave a nest before it can fly, but that’s fairly normal. Some birds, like young owls, habitually leave the nest before they can fly; in fact, there is a word for these birds – they are “branchers.” Try not to disturb a brancher, or any fledgling or near-fledgling; an attentive adult knows where it is and will return soon to feed it. Permit fledglings to fulfill their post-fledging learning period as they begin to fly and find food for themselves.

Some species, like robins and bluebirds for example, may re-nest and the process is repeated with another brood fledging several weeks later. Eventually, you may be lucky enough to have fledglings visit your feeding station, including your water feature. It’s great fun to see young birds in your yard and to see interactions between them and adults, and it’s one of the most enjoyable parts of the year when we have a chance to witness this period in the nesting process.

Share your backyard birding experiences and photos with The Birding Wire at editorstbw2@gmail.com