[Birdtalk] Fw: Banished Nortern flickers

[CALVIN ROBBINS]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: CALVIN ROBBINS<mailto:calrobbins at msn.com> 
To: birdtalk at utahbires.org<mailto:birdtalk at utahbires.org> 
Sent: Wednesday, April 18, 2007 1:08 PM
Subject: Banished Nortern flickers


I have been watching a northern flicker nest hole in a tree that is in the Jackson Camp Ground in Ogden Valley.  I first found it about two week ago when one of the birds was excavating the hole.  That day I watched the construction for about three hours and when I left the hole was big enough to contain the flicker. I visited the sight three or four times since then and every thing seemed to be going on all right.  On the 15 of April I was up there again and I watched the nesting hole for about 30 minutes.  Both birds were there and every thing looked normal.  I left for about an hour to check on a second flicker nesting sight and when I got back to the first hole thing had greatly Changed. Both flickers were at the hole and one of them was fighting with an other bird which was in the nest cavity.  The flickers lost the fight and after franticly hopping around the hole they flew off.  While they were still there I saw an E starling pop its head out and dump a white substance from the nest.  I assumed that this was the broken egg shell of one of the flickers eggs.  The flickers did not seem to have put up a determined fight for the nest.  However on retrospect I believe the only way the starling could have taken over the nest sight was by waiting until both flicker left the hole and then entered it, with the starling in the hole the flickers could not evict it.  I have not been back to the sight to see if the starling is still the nest holder but I intend to.  I have on several occasions seen starting using what I thought were old pecker hole but this was the first time I had witnessed an eviction.  I am wondering if this is a common happening or if I saw something unique.  Cal Robbins
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