Rain Gryphon

So, way back in the spring of 2019, I discovered a peculiar Robin's nest in my foyer window which I dubbed "The Volcano". Despite my good wishes, someone did, indeed, think of looking for delicious baby Robins inside a volcano, so that nesting cycle ended in disappointment, as so many of them seem to.

The nest was sheltered from the weather (my windows have these weird steel slat awnings), so I left it in place, and it survived the rain and weather just fine, unlike most Robin's nests, which fall apart within a few weeks of being abandoned. Nobody used it in 2020, but this spring, I noticed a pair of Robins checking it out, then building it up higher. Within a few weeks in late April, I had eggs, and then babies.

Unlike last time, I left this one pretty much alone, apart from a brief check to make sure that there really were eggs inside. I don't think that I did anything in 2019 to mark the nest for a predator, but I was being careful. Also, sadly, I'd not washed the windows since 2019, which came back to haunt me, but...

They raised FOUR big, strong babies, and got all of them to fledging. Both the parents were looking a bit ragged by the end, but they did an outstanding job. The smallest left the nest a day behind the others, so there was no real 'runt', nor seemingly any problem with sufficient food. As always with Robins, there's no effective way to supplement their diet, but it alternated rain and sun, so there were lots of worms and bugs.

Click to Embiggen

Babies still in the nest, late May, a few days before they left, eager for food. There are actually four babies in the nest here, which is a pretty stout performance for Robins, especially this far along in the process. One or two have normally died by this point.




The last baby, all alone on the windowsill, watches me through the glass. The babies knew I was there, from the time they could see, and of course they were used to me, and it didn't bother them. Mom and Dad were considerably less comfortable with the situation, but managed to carry on anyway.

So, things turned out well. As a side note, I really love the idea of other animals making their homes on or around my house. It's like a storybook setting, in some ways. That just really pleases me.

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So, I know the exact locations of two Robins' nests, and I'm pretty sure where the Cardinals have nested, although I prolly won't ever find it exactly. One Robin is in the big shrubbery/tree at the NW corner of the house. I found her accidentally the other day while clearing out grape vines. The other one is set up right outside the bathroom window, of all places, in plain sight from the window, although well-hidden otherwise. She started sitting her eggs Monday, so ought to hatch around the 27th or so. The other one is probably a few days in advance, although I'm unsure how much. The Cardinals are somewhere inside the shrubbery, probably right outside the picture window.

I found a predated Robin's egg Monday alongside the feeder. I'm pretty sure it's the work of the Cowbirds. I haven't checked either nest to be sure. Definitely carried there by a bird, as there was a hole in the very middle of the shell, and the yolk eaten out. For whatever reason, I've had absolute hordes of Cowbirds at the feeders this year - that's a very new thing. Lots of Sparrows, Grackles, and Blackbirds, along with many Doves (also new) and Cowbirds. We've also got a pair of Housefinches who are probably nesting nearby, possibly across the road among the Blackbirds, as well as the usual Woodpeckers.

I found a Song Sparrow's used nest while trimming back the shrub under the kitchen window. I was pretty sure they were in there, but I never knew for a fact. I've also started to attract Crows, although I'm not the least bit sure why. I've put out unshelled peanuts for them, although the Grackles seem to eat most of them. Crows are very, very wary about coming to eat with the rest, and the smaller birds are very cautious of the Crows. I may put something down at the end of the yard for them. There's at least one pair of Juncos as well. The other day, when I went to refill the seed tube, everybody flew away except this little cock Junco, who stared me down until I got about three feet away, when he lost his nerve.

Lots of bird sex, and mild mating fights, Cowbirds and Blackbirds especially. I also saw earlier today three cock Sparrows with one hen. Her actual mate (I think) was trying to keep the other two away, while she kind of circled, using him for a shield. She suddenly flopped onto her back with her wings spread, and he mounted her that way (which I've not seen before), and it was all over in a few seconds. Also one poor Dove, trying to impress a hen who wasn't really ready yet. He ended up finally just kind of posing before her, and puffed up his feathers to look big and impressive, but she wasn't having any.

This is really seriously the most activity I've ever seen at my feeders, lots of new birds, and constant action. I wonder how many grew up here, and are come back now?

I saw an Otter crossing the road! Exceptionally well-fed Otter too, or else pregnant. I don't know when their season for having babies is.

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Very aggressive Robin in what's left of the maple tree by the driveway. In about 30 minutes of sitting out front, I saw him chase off an Oriole (which you seldom see here), then a big Grackle cock. Robins are usually fairly mellow. I wondered at first if the Oriole's bright orange was upsetting to the Robin (cocks get twitchy in breeding season sometimes), but then he went after the Grackle too. I think he's just very touchy about his core territory right now. This is the tree that I lost part of last week, so I wonder if that has some bearing. There's bound to be a nest up there, but I don't see it.

If there was a nest in there that got wrecked, I didn't find any eggs or hatchlings, and I think I would have, since I raked pretty thoroughly. Robin's nests that fall in storms usually leave little blobs of muddy sticks, too.

A dead Robin fledgling, from the family that nested in the maple tree out back. I'm just about certain he crashed and broke his neck on his first flight out of the nest. That's really sad to see, after his parents put so much love and work into rising him, but it's gonna happen. These guys put their nest at least 50 feet off the ground, which may have had a bearing on events. You just never see Robins nesting that high.

I'm pretty sure he died in a crash, since he hasn't been eaten by anything but insects. If a Raccoon or a Hawk got him, there'd be bones and feathers everywhere, just like he'd exploded. If you look closely, you can see the bony ring (sclerotic ring) of the eye still mostly in place, which you just don't see on a dead bird if birds or mammals have been eating at him.

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The Robins in the tree by the driveway (a different family) that I climbed up to see on Aug 14th. I apologize for the quality of the picture, but I was lucky to get even that. There are actually three babies in the nest - you can just barely see the top of the beak and eye orbit for the closest one. The other two watched me climb up, curious and not the least bit afraid, then begged for food as soon as I had my hand and camera above them. I shot this more or less blind. The third one, probably the wisest of the bunch, hunkered down and tried to hide. Immediately after I took this, the Mombird started in with the alarm call, and they all went down in the nest and tried to look invisible. That brown stuff on their beaks is just dirt. Their parents feed them largely on earthworms, so you get that. It's actually beneficial for them, as it starts them out with sand and little bits of grit for their gizzards before they even leave the nest.

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In the little tree (yew?) by the front door, the doves are raising what are almost certain to be the last baby birds of summer. Doves can only feed two babies at a time, so they start early, and end late, getting in four or five, sometimes even six, broods per summer.

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Here's DoveDad on Aug 22nd. One egg, perhaps even both, may already be hatched. I was very wary about getting too close and frightening him, since if he was sitting unhatched eggs, he might abandon them. He's giving me the "Oh shit! Does he see me?" look here.

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A week later, on Aug 30th. Both babies seem to be growing and healthy. The parents have put a lot of work into the babies at this point, and are unlikely to abandon them if I poke around the nest. The real danger here is frightening the babies, in which case they might fledge early, which juvenile birds will sometimes do if a predator finds the nest. These guys are just a few days too young for that to be an issue. I avoided showing much interest in their tree after this, just in case.

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The evening of Sept 4th. I missed the older chick fledging, but here's the younger one, still in the nest. I was pretty sure he'd leave either tonight or tomorrow morning.

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15 minutes later.
He's technically left the nest at this point, but is still sitting on the branch beside it. I feel fortunate to see this, as one usually doesn't. Half an hour later he'd flown away, probably into the shrubbery along the front of the house, which seems a very popular spot for young birds to shelter for a few days as they learn to fly.