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Does anyone else enjoy watching birds nesting around their home? I was fortunate to watch a pair of American Robins build their nest on a downspout just outside my laundry room window, incubate three eggs, and care for the chicks until they fledged. All within a one month period! 
 
I have lots of pictures and a video of the robins!

May 13, 2024.
I watched the robins gather nesting material and begin to build. The first few days were slow-going (downspouts are slippery!) but determination brought success.

May 22, 2024.

Once all the eggs are laid, mom spends most of her time incubating. (Incubation takes 12-14 days.)

May 31, 2024.

Hatched! Time to get busy!

June 2, 2024.

For the first few days after hatching, the mother robin spends much of the day brooding the tiny nestlings (basically sitting on the nest keeping the young'uns warm and safe). As you can see in the photo above, there are three little ones!

By this time, I had set up my Nikon Coolpix P950 camera on a tripod in my laundry room, complete with a remote shutter release. I could watch the nest on the camera screen as I did laundry (keeping just out of view) and quickly take photographs without disturbing the parents.

June 6, 2024.

Baby robins grow so fast! I was leaving the next day for a long weekend, and I hoped they would still be in the nest when I returned.

June 10, 2024.

When I returned from my trip, the nest was bursting at the seams! It wouldn't be long now! (Robins fledge when they are about 13 days old.)

A bit of trivia: "Nestlings produce a fecal sac quickly after eating, while the parent is still present to carry it off."* It looks like there were a few accidents ... not surprising since there is virtually no space to move around in that nest!

And Then There Were Two, original 5x5" watercolor painting.

June 11, 2024.
I awoke the next day to find only two little ones remaining in the nest! I would have loved to watch the nestlings nonstop, but I had plenty of other things to do. When I returned to the window late that afternoon, I was surprised to find that only one chick remained in the nest! I checked again after dinner, and it was obvious that this little one had no intention of lingering.

I created a video of the last fledgling for your enjoyment! Simply click the arrow above. But be sure to come back to read the rest of the story!

(Video run time is 4:26, but if you don't have time for all the cuteness, you can fast forward to 2:12 to see mom swoop in and feed junior, or to 3:50 to get right to the slow-mo fledge.)

June 11, 2024, continued.

I immediately took my camera outside to make sure the little bird was all right. Only having seen the fledge in real time, I wasn't sure if it was a fall or an intentional flight. (After slowing down and reviewing the video, I think he changed his mind mid-fledge, but by then it was too late!)

Anyway, I plopped myself down in the grass a distance away so as not to scare him, and then...

Suddenly, dad flew to the nest and seemed very surprised to find it empty! He fluttered back and forth a bit and then paused on the roof before flying off.

Alas, the fledgling had wandered along the brick wall into thick foliage and couldn't be seen.

A comedy of errors.
Little one continued his exploration. He hopped across the sidewalk, fluttered into the Rose of Sharon, then promptly fell out.

He proceeded on his way as I kept a lookout for the parents ... and predators. Little robin made his way into the neighbor's yard, then to the brick retaining wall at the edge of the property. I spotted an adult robin to the left, then another in the grass beyond the wall. I felt hopeful as junior attempted to scale the wall, but he couldn't quite make it and so continued his wandering.

I started to worry.

As he bounced along toward the bird feeder in my backyard, I had an idea. (I was a bit worried about this little one. After all, statistics are not in his favor: only one in four robin fledglings survive until November.) He needed food before he wore himself out. I rejected the thought of digging up a worm and rather grabbed a bag of dried mealworms from the garage for the little one to eat.

Returning with the mealworms, I was happy to see that mom had found her fledgling! Of course, the battery on my good camera had exhausted itself, so I didn't get a photo. However, I was encouraged to witness a much-needed feeding (it had been a good 30 minutes since the fledge) before they both scooted around the corner, presumably to where the other fledglings were being nurtured.

A little miracle indeed.

Paint. Love. Repeat.

*Information from Into the Nest.