Nests and the Birds That Built Them

These stunning images are from a new book Nests: Fifty Nests and the Birds That Built Them ($29.95, Chronicle Books, June 2011), by Sharon Beals. Beals photographed nests from all over the world, collected over the last two centuries and currently held in the collections of the California Academy of Sciences, the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at UC Berkeley, and the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology.

Made of human and animal hair, shells, plants, feathers, mud and more, these birds' nests are architectual marvels, created stick by stick and bird by bird. The book is accompanied with illustrations of the birds that built the nest (included in our slide show), with drawings by Laurie Wigham.

The cover of the book (left) is of the nest of the Arctic Redpoll, a finch that lives in Greenland and Canada. 

house finch
Carpodacus mexicanus

The Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology

Nest and eggs
USA: California: Ventura County; Oxnard
19 April 2008

Altamira oriole
Icterus gularis

Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology

Nest
Guatemala: Departamento El Progreso: Morazán
06 May 2001

Eggs
Guatemala: Departamento Santa Rosa: Taxisco
11 May 2007

Barn Swallow
Hirundo rustica

The California Academy of Sciences

Nest
China: Heilungkiang Province: Wutalienchieh
09 July 1937

Eggs
China: Heilungkiang Province: Lesser Khingan, Chengchin Station
22 June 1938

Bank Swallow
Riparia riparia

The California Academy of Sciences

Nest, Eggs
USA: California: San Francisco County; Ocean Beach
06 June 1960

Caspian Tern
Hydroprogne caspia

The Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology

Nest, Eggs
Mexico: Estado de Baja California: Shell Island; Scammons Lagoon
17 June 1932

Western Tanager
Piranga ludoviciana

Museum Vertebrate Zoology

Nest and Eggs
USA: Nevada: Washoe County; Washoe Valley, 9 miles (14 km) N of Carson City
08 June 1934