We have Robin babies

Remember that really crappy picture of Mommy Robin sitting on her eggs? I had plenty of time to look up all sorts of interesting info on Robin eggs. I was expecting them to hatch Tues/weds/thurs time frame. It takes 12-14 days to hatch. Monday I was suspicious. Tuesday I saw Daddy Robin come by with a worm.

Robins mate for the season and not necessarily for life. They tend to have 3 clutches. They usually lay 3 or 4 eggs. Sometimes 2 if it's the last clutch of the season. They also only lay one egg a day. The mom sits on the eggs while Papa stays in the area. After the babies are hatched, both mom and dad feed babies around 40 times a day. We just thought we had it rough with kids demanding food every few hours!! 9-16 days later the babies are ready to fly on their own. Mommy Robin is usually already out of the picture at this point. She is busy building another nest somewhere else getting ready for more eggs! Mommy Robin will spread herself out when it is raining to keep the eggs/babies nice and dry.

So back to our Robin... She was down one egg a couple days after she laid them. Not sure what happened but I saw the shell on the ground and another finch type bird eating at it. Then Mommy Robin came in and attacked it. It flew off. It was a windy day that day but I doubt if it blew out. Maybe she pushed it out or another bird came to steal it. Either way, it left her with one fewer egg, and that means she had 2 or 3 now.

Tuesday (5-5) I was mowing and I guess the mower scared her off. So I quickly grabbed the ladder so my neighbors and husband could think I was nuts! No, really, I wanted a peek. There were babies in there! I have no idea how many. All I saw was fuzz, not eggs. I also didn't want mommy Robin to think too badly of me so I peeked and got away. She put her nest in a pretty good place. It is HARD to see it, even with a ladder!

So hopefully soon we will get to see the babies hanging out and then trying to fly.