Tuesday, April 18, 2006

The Robins, One More Time

So, she builds up what looks like a nest and the next time I pass, it has all come down. She works again (I do actually see her dropping twigs and grass into the crevice) and next time I pass it is all down. I remember this from last year, but it didn't seem to last quite this long.

I had a hunch that she just needed a couple days of quiet (no kids tearing in and out of the front door) to get her to finish the nest and lay her eggs. Considering we would all be out of the house for four days last weekend I thought I'd come home to a nest with four blue eggs.

Not so. I came home to nothing. Huh, guess she changed her mind....

Anyway, yesterday morning I walked out and overnight she'd built up the whole crevice and was beginning to mud in the round portion of her nest. And then? Two hours later, she'd knocked it all down.

Meanwhile, there is a massive nest building taking place over our back porch light that I didn't know about. I discovered it mid-morning.

There is a lot of grass, hay, horse-hair, man-hair, stuffing, straw (anyone read THE BEST NEST? Cute.) that gets dropped under the nest site in the nest building process. I discovered the nest because of the pile of junk that my kids almost got in trouble for. I ignored this particular nest because I think it is doomed, but (shrug) no one told the bird.

So, remember when my son ran through the back door? Well, it left the screen portion curled up obnoxiously. And the second aforementioned robin decided to incorporate it into her nest. I pushed open the door and down came nest all over me.

I don't think it dissuaded her one iota.

So this morning, robin number one built up the crevice again and tore it down again. Robin two has not yet incorporated the screen into her nest today but it is still precariously perched over the halogen light that angles down.

I have a feeling that these robins are not meant to procreate. Darwin awards anyone?

3 comments:

Sue Jackson said...

The Best Nest has been one of my all-time favorite books since I was about 4 years old! In our yard this year, it's cardinals. There's a Momma cardinal that has been throwing herself against the window glass of our home office non-stop for about a month now. I'm guessing she's got a nest in the bush near the window. She just pecks at the glass for hours every day, apparently trying to protect her eggs from the reflected bird she sees in the window. Now that's dedication.

Sue

Chaos-Jamie said...

Is that what they are doing? I thought my robins were so stupid (or narcisitic) they were trying to mate with themselves. One likes my back basement window. The other, the robin image in my van door.

My neighbor gets the cardinals, but I still get to watch them teach their baby how to fly since they nest in his side bush--out my kitchen window.

Chaos-Jamie said...

LOL! My own blog wouldn't let me comment because I didn't get the letters right!