This June, I watched a robin build a nest in a blue spruce tree outside my window. amazing what workmanship can be wrought with a beak! She wove grasses and twigs together and then padded the nest with mud. When the nest was complete, she laid 3 eggs over several days.
Only one egg hatched. This baby robin is all mouth. A mother robin not only knows when to feed her babies, she knows the proper combination of bugs and worms for each feeding.
With worm in beak, the mother robin is perched on the dumpster which is next to the nest tree.
snoozing (about 2 days old)
snoozing (about a week old)
starting to check out the world beyond the nest
fully feathered at nearly 2 weeks old and preparing to fledge
LINK:
American Robin a plethora of information! answers to more questions than you could EVER think to ask! a little background and some information--
We just bought a house and were preparing for a tear-off re-roofing. I noticed a robin starting to build a nest in a tree right next to the dumpster. Oh no! Can I move the nest? I wondered. That led me on a journey of internet research and the discovery of the wonderful site in the link above. What I found out--
► Robins carefully choose the site of their nests, memorizing all details of location. If the nest is moved, they won't recognize it.
► After laying eggs, the mother sits on the nest, rotating the eggs and keeping them at the proper temperature and humidity levels.
► Robins have 2-3 nestings per year with the same partner. (They do not mate for life.) ► Most robins die their first year, but if they make it beyond, they live for 5-6 years.
► robin songs:
true song a territorial declaration
dawn song another territorial delcaration
"peek" and "tut" calls are heard in alarm situations
whinny heard in mildly alarming situations
"seeee" call given in response to the presence of an aerial predator
"zeeup" call a contact note heard mainly during migration
photos by me © 2011
Wow! Your photos are amazing! How lucky you are to have gotten to follow along. I occasionally see a robin in my backyard.
ReplyDeletethank you for sharing your baby robin journey and your wonderful photographs.
ReplyDeleteWow, great photos! How amazing that you got to watch that whole process.
ReplyDeleteAwwww! How amazing you got to watch this process! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThat is awesome! We have birds that lay eggs in our front porch. I love watching the babies stick their heads out of the hole to be fed by the parents. The other day one of the babies was getting a flying lesson:)
ReplyDeleteyou really got some amazing pictures. thanks for sharing those fun robin facts.
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome peek into the home of some fine feathered friends. I especially liked the info on Robins because I'm married to one, not a bird -- just a Robin! =D
ReplyDeleteCheck out my recent post….
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Cathy Kennedy, Children's Author
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What great fun to watch that delightful process. Isn't the internet amazing for finding out facts and info? Thanks for such an interesting post! :)
ReplyDeleteLove your post. The Robin's eggs are such a beautiful color. I love birds and birds' nests. Such a wonderful beauty with the songs, and colors of the feathers. Thanks for stopping by aprons & Old lace.
ReplyDeletewow! I didn't know they had that many songs! Neat! And I always assumed that all the eggs in the nest hatched. Learn something new every day. Thanks for sharing {:-D
ReplyDeleteHow sweet! A very nice post.
ReplyDeleteYour photos are absolutely fabulous!! We had robbins nest in a tree next to our house, but it was too high to see into. Now I can see what was happening!!
ReplyDeleteWalking the beach is one of my favorite ways of relaxing on vacation, too.
Thanks so much for visiting. I hope that you come back soon.
Barb
What lovely photos - the blue of the eggs is stunning!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful! Love the tiny bird and those blue eggs!
ReplyDeleteI think you´re so lucky. I would love to be able to take such amazing photos :)
Oh, such a wonderful and beautiful sight to behold... to be able to witness as you have! Awesome captures. Learned a bunch of new things about the Robin too. It is amazing how the wild and free know how to create, have & raise babies, mate & more. Thank you so much for sharing Margaret!!!
ReplyDeleteThey grow so fast!
ReplyDeleteI just love the color of robin eggs :)
Awww - how cute! Wonderful that you were able to get such fantastic, up close shots!
ReplyDeleteWoW! What wondrous photos and I love that you captured the growth.
ReplyDeleteThat blue color is beautiful.
Lovely post.
Thanks for sharing!
My entry is here:
http://mypoetcharm.blogspot.com/2011/07/nature-and-my-love.html
What a nifty capture. Did the other two ever hatch?
ReplyDeleteI love seeing progression pictures like this. It's such a neat thing!
Thanks for sharing.
A+
Beautiful story, I so enjoyed reading it!
ReplyDeleteOh, this was so much fun to learn about the robins! Thank you for visiting my blog and commenting -- it was fun to see you again!
ReplyDeleteWonderful story and photos! The nest is beautifully made and I love the egg color.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE birds!! Your pictures were so sweet - I had no idea they got their feathers so quickly!
ReplyDeleteI always think about the scripture where it talks about God providing for the birds of the field and when I put out food and water for them I think that in some small way, I'm doing His work :-)
How could I not join your blog when your last two posts are about robins and ice-cream?! Thanks for stopping by and commenting on my Saturday Centus post days ago, so I could discover Splendid Little Stars.
ReplyDeleteI'll be back.
What a wonderful series, Margaret! I think we do our best learning when we start with a meaningful question.
ReplyDeleteWish I had read this much, much sooner! I didn't know they snoozed so much - I kept checking on the nest below my deck and at one point I thought the babies had died because they were so still!
ReplyDeletep.s. I love your blog and I'm your new follower!
ReplyDeleteBarb
Just magic...thank you for sharing this journey with us...how I love birds...
ReplyDeleteThis is a wonderful, and very informative post! And your photos are excellent! I want to see photos of your new house, next.
ReplyDeleteThose robin eggs caught my eye on Hocking Hill Gardner's sidebar and I had to sign up on your blog as a follower. Love your photos...love your blog. http://egrettawells.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeletehttp://tengablescottage.blogspot.com/