Mingalarbar everyone!
A very common bird here in the US, the American Robin, but rare to have them build a nest in a small tree right outside one of my home's windows, a nest they will only use once in their lives.
I was privileged one Spring to watch these birds come and go sharing their lives with me from tiny beautiful blue eggs, through fledging (life between hatching and leaving the nest), with extremely caring parents at every step of life.
I was there when the little ones caught the first wind under their wings into flight.
Nature is amazing when left to do their thing and I was sure to take extreme care to avoid disturbing them in any way. Some even consider the first robin of the Spring to bring good luck.
Here is a bit of the backstory, and perhaps a bit of luck.
One day while in the garden, I noticed a pair of robins very busy building a nest in a small tree just outside one of the windows in our home.
Setting up a camera, I soon saw there were 2 little blue eggs for me to watch.
After a couple of weeks the eggs started hatching and to my surprise it wasn't just 2 but 3 little robins that soon appeared.
Both parents kept very busy caring for their babies, feeding them, cleaning and repairing the nest and standing guard against danger.
For the short time they were in the nest, everyday I spent some time watching these little fledglings grow in size, and before too long they were about half the size as their parents.
After a couple of weeks the eggs started hatching and to my surprise it wasn't just 2 but 3 little robins that soon appeared.
Both parents kept very busy caring for their babies, feeding them, cleaning and repairing the nest and standing guard against danger.
For the short time they were in the nest, everyday I spent some time watching these little fledglings grow in size, and before too long they were about half the size as their parents.
Sensing mom or dad was near, from snoozing most of the day, they would quickly jump up with hungry little mouths on stretched necks clamoring to be the first, and sometimes only, to take any meal brought to them.
Too soon for me the time arrived for them to leave the nest. As they grew, the parents would not visit the nest as often, only to feed a bit and clean.
I watched and listened as one or the other of the parents would fly to a nearby tree and call for them.
The little robins crowding each other for space would flap their little wings but couldn't yet get the air to fly from the nest.
One by one I watched all three of them grow from little eggs to jumping from their nest to the wide world of the ground....and danger.
Once on the ground all they could do was hop around, I so much wanted to do something to protect them from any danger, but I knew this was their life in nature and they needed to be left alone.
I watched and listened as one or the other of the parents would fly to a nearby tree and call for them.
The little robins crowding each other for space would flap their little wings but couldn't yet get the air to fly from the nest.
One by one I watched all three of them grow from little eggs to jumping from their nest to the wide world of the ground....and danger.
Once on the ground all they could do was hop around, I so much wanted to do something to protect them from any danger, but I knew this was their life in nature and they needed to be left alone.
Of course I was sure to keep out any neighborhood dogs and cats that might be running around since these are human introduced dangers.
Over the next couple of days, the parents would call for them from near nest trees and the little robins would hop around, catching a bit of wind under their wings to reach the low branches just a few feet off the ground.
Then one morning they were gone, having left their nest and learned to fly and off to their new life as young robins.
If you happen to see little birds hopping around, be sure to keep your pets inside and let nature play it's course. Usually they are just figuring out how to live.
Thanks for watching, hope you enjoyed my HomeSpun video with a bit of the robin backstory, good luck!
Then one morning they were gone, having left their nest and learned to fly and off to their new life as young robins.
If you happen to see little birds hopping around, be sure to keep your pets inside and let nature play it's course. Usually they are just figuring out how to live.
Thanks for watching, hope you enjoyed my HomeSpun video with a bit of the robin backstory, good luck!
