Spotted Flycatchers

In the last edition of MM, we reported that two Spotted Flycatchers had arrived at the churchyard in Meldreth, having travelled from subSaharan Africa. Both birds were ringed, possibly by us last year. By late May we were sure the female bird was in the nest incubating eggs. Spotted Flycatchers incubate their eggs for about a fortnight and during that time, female birds are regularly fed by the male. The females also make quick forays to catch insect prey. This was the case with our pair of flycatchers. At the end of May, we believe the eggs hatched, as the birds’ behaviour changed. Both male and female birds were leaving the nest and returning with beaks full of insects to feed to the chicks. They were also seen taking faecal sacs away for disposal. Interestingly, an un-ringed adult flycatcher was also seen at the nest box. It is known that if there is a non-breeding adult flycatcher in the area, it may assist with feeding the young. Maybe this was one of last year’s brood? We were hoping to catch the flycatchers to be able to read the rings and see if these were birds ringed in Meldreth. Unfortunately, our attempts to date have been unsuccessful; Spotted Flycatchers have excellent eyesight and are highly manoeuvrable in the air! We were unsure how many chicks were in the box, but on 7th June, one was seen stretching its wings, indicating that it (they?) were probably close to fledging, which generally occurs a fortnight after hatching. On 11th June, the chick(s) left the nest, leaving one unhatched egg, which was removed. We hope that the adults will try for a second brood but as we go to press, there is no such activity. Jan Butchers and Ken McLean

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