phoebe nestlings

Eastern Phoebe Sayornis phoebe is a small member of the flycatcher family that nests near water in open woodland and suburbs.  Phoebes are about 6-1/2 inches long, and mainly eat insects.

We've been watching this one since April as she sits in a tree or on a branch overhanging the pond.
Once she spots an insect, she flies off the branch, snatches the insect mid-air, and returns to the branch to eat it.  This is called “hawking”, a behavior shared with other members of the flycatcher family.

Once she started flying under a deck nearby with freshly caught food items, we suspected she was feeding babies.

Sure enough, two small Phoebes peeked out over the edge of the nest.