Nest In Fake Tree!

by Matt Bushong
(Brisbane, California, USA)

Mama Robin in the Nest

This spring we had robins build a nest in an 8 ft. tree that is in the atrium area of the front door to our house.

At first I did not even see the nest. I saw a big mess of straw below the tree, on the patio entry way. I wondered who'd made the mess.

Then I looked up and a bird suddenly flew out of the tree... just missing my head! It was a Robin. That started our entire "Robin Family Adventure."

Everyday we would see the "mom" Robin sitting in the nest as we would leave for work or taking our son to school.

We would see the male Robin sitting in a tree farther away... chattering at us if we got too close to Momma and her nest. Momma Robin was spooked the first few times we would walk by, but then got used to us.

A few weeks later there were four blue eggs in the nest. Sometime after that the four chicks hatched!

Sadly one of the tiny chicks fell out of the nest and died. The three other chicks began to grow as mom and dad brought them worms.

We left out a small plate below the tree with meal worms, red worms and small pieces of chopped fresh strawberries. They ate well! The chicks began to grow.

Sometimes the mom and dad Robin would stay away from the nest for a while. We got worried and actually hand fed the chicks several times.

Then... when we would walk by... all three chicks would open their mouths in anticipation of food. They began to outgrow the nest and began perching on its outer ledge.

Twice one of the chicks fell out and we had to put them back in the nest. One time the entire nest fell out and we had to put it back. Still... the chicks grew and endured. Mom and Dad Robin hung in there.

All three of the chicks matured enough to fly away! We still see the young Robins in the outer trees near our house from time to time.

The interesting part of this whole Robin story is... that the tree they built their nest in was a fake tree!!! It had wood and plastic branches and silk leaves! We bought it at Target for $39.95!