Date: 6/14/26 10:38 am From: Daniel Getman <000003a484abda6a-dmarc-request...> Subject: Great Crested Flycatcher Nestbox-starting to feed young
I spent some time this morning watching the Great Crested Flycatcher nest box, where I had previously observed 5 eggs on June 4th, but had not looked inside since. So I don’t know if 5 eggs is the final number or when they may have finished laying eggs. The Cornell site reports that 4-8 eggs is normal and that incubating is normally for 13-15 days and then fledging in another 13-15 days.
Today I was able to quietly sit tucked under a shady area under a nearby tree line, which did not seem to bother the parents. They went about their business feeding the young.
They are clearly just beginning to feed their young, but not real frequently. So I’m assuming they have only recently hatched. If the young are now just being fed, 14 days ago would have been May 31. So they would have been done laying 5 eggs then or a little earlier. That being the case, my best estimate would be for the young to fledge sometime around June 25-28.
While watching, I saw them bring in several different insects and was able to get some photos of 3 of them; a small white moth, a small green grasshopper-like insect and some sort of black winged insect.
Interestingly, the parents don’t seem to be carefully guarding the nest, as two different birds briefly perched atop the box, but did not go inside, and were not chased away by the parents; a female Brown-headed Cowbird and a Blue Jay. I found the female Cowbird interesting. When I had previously looked at the 5 eggs, all looked the same and did not appear to include a cowbird egg, but one could have been laid in there later, or not. Maybe the female cowbird atop the box meant nothing.
