From the editors
ANIMAL ARCHITECTURE Words and illustrations Aimee Baars
Ever since the Corona crisis struck, I have discovered a few neighborhood walks, among them a path to a nearby estate named Clingendael. The winding path crosses a stream, then follows it until reaching a pond embraced by several impressive oaks. While I walk this route alone - and so do most other obeying humans - birds, insects, sheep and all other organisms have continued their gatherings enthusiastically. Never have I paid more attention to these fellow city dwellers than during the past month. Their lives have continued unchanged and I have been observing them keenly.
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In less than two days, Duck number 7 has built herself a whole new home. Under my feet, ant colonies march on towards their commune. Our human building production has seemingly slowed down, but theirs hasn’t. So, why not take this time of human boredom to inspect, and perhaps learn from, our undisturbed and bustling fauna life? Building efforts of animal architects can lead to the modification of whole ecological landscapes, both above and below ground. In this article, three animal ‘homes’ are explored from an architectural point of view, graded on aesthetics (A), construction (C), climate (CL) and to keep things Dutch; functionality (F). The Scrape Nest Scrape nests are straightforward architectural forms; material assembled and intertwined together. As Goodfellow (2011, p.6) mentions: “The builders of scrape nests are the minimalists of the avian architecture fraternity.” Despite their simplicity, scrape nests fulfill the main duty of parental care just as effectively as more complex structures. Less is more in this modernist architecture. A scrape nest is categorised as a depression or ‘cup’ in the earth, added with material, such as twigs, small pebbles, shell fragments and leaves.
Camouflage in these structures is essential for defense purposes. Sometimes scrape nests are built on a slight elevation, which gives the bird a good view of possible enemies. The hen starts construction through a shuffling movement by her own feet on the ground, creating a small depression. The choice of material influences construction behaviour. In most cases, after collecting surrounding material, the hen uses her beak to tuck the construction elements alongside or beneath her, this is defined as ‘sideways building’. To soften the edges, she lines her temporary home using leaves or feathers. As easy as this sounds, research has proven that scrape nests demonstrate precision in regard to climate control, to result in minimum heat loss for the eggs; too deep and the cold ground affects incubation, too shallow and the wind chill forms a problem. Sometimes scrape nests are re-used, causing their architecture to develop into a sustainable, permanent cup. The Burrow A burrow; the hollowing out of an existing foundation, is inhabited by many animals, among which the rabbit family. Rabbits are communal, thus they typically dig their burrows in clusters, called warrens. Whereas one single rabbit can dig a long
