The Differences & Similarities in Nestling Feeding Behavior Between Water-wader Birds.

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The Differences & Similarities in Nestling Feeding Behavior Between Water-wader Birds. Great Egrets are the first to kick off the breeding season and are the first to have hatchlings.
Great Egrets & nestlings in a mixed colony of birds.
Great Egrets are the first to kick off the breeding season and are the first to have hatchlings.
It’s feeding time for the Wood Stork Nestlings
Wood Stork’s parents feed their nestlings primarily through regurgitation with the parent dropping predigested food from its gullet onto the waiting chicks’ beak.
This direct feeding from the parents’ beak occurs for the first two weeks, after which the chicks begin to pick up regurgitated food from the nest floor.

Wood Storks regurgitation, bringing up partially digested, protein-rich food from their own stomachs directly into the chicks' beak, or its drop on the nest floor.
At this time the Wood Stork drops and undigested fish, that will be retrieved and fed to the nestling later.
Wood Storks regurgitation, bringing up partially digested, protein-rich food from their own stomachs directly into the chicks' beak, or its drops on the nest floor.
Currently the Wood Stork drop and undigested fish, that will be retrieved and fed to the nestlings later.
Nestling competes fiercely with each other, and dominant chicks sometimes end up stabbing the youngest siblings to death.
Snowy Egret nestlings face intense competition, driven by asynchronous hatching (older chicks are bigger and stronger) and parental feeding (food dropped in nest, chicks fight).
Often the Wood Storks parents will stand at the nest digesting food, when the nestlings cry out for another feeding, the parents can deliver the predigested food.
Food is dropped on the nest floor.
Wood stork chicks grow to nearly adult size and become capable of flight (fledge) in about 8 to 10 weeks but they still have feathered heads and yellow bills as juveniles.
As the nestlings grow, the parents will have to strengthen and enlarge the nest.
The parents shield the nestlings from the sun’s heat by extending their wings.
The feeding of the Ibis chicks.
Adult ibises feed their nestlings by regurgitation partly digested food, a mash of invertebrates and small rodents. This diet ensures the young receive soft, nutrient-rich meals.
After being fed by their parents, ibis nestlings remain in or near their nest until they are old enough to begin flying and foraging on their own.
This brood is still waiting to be fed.
It is feeding time.
Ibis chicks compete with their siblings for food, and this competition can be intense and sometimes deadly.
Ibis eggs hatch at different times, which creates a size hierarchy in the nest. The first-born chicks, which are larger and more developed, have a distinct competitive advantage over the younger siblings.
Snowy egrets encourage their chicks to chase them for food primarily to teach them how to fly and forage independently, and as a method for the parents to assess which chicks are strongest and most likely to survive. This behavior is an adaptive strategy to ensure the fittest offspring survive, especially if food resources are limited.

Great Blue Heron parents feed their nestlings by bringing food like fish, frogs, and insects back to the nest, then regurgitating it for the chicks to eat, either directly into their mouths or into the nest's bottom for them to peck at.
Older chicks learn to eat whole items dropped by parents, who also bring larger, non-regurgitated food as chicks grow.
A Great Blue heron flies into the area, and perches high on a pine tree.
The Great Blue Heron circles the area and delivers nutrition to the chicks.
Great Blue Heron chicks are initially fed by their parents through regurgitation. As the chicks grow, they may eventually eat food directly from the parents or grab whole fish that are dropped into the nest.
The nutrition is dropped on the nest’s floor.
The chicks will feed on the nutrition dropped on the nest floor.