Broken Home

That describes the situation faced by this lone baby robin earlier this week. Even though he had the beginnings of flight feathers he wasn't able to fend for himself and not ready to leave the nest, but had no choice. 

His home was blown down from a crepe myrtle tree alongside our home.

We found the nest remains close to the roadside near our home. Pat moved the nest parts  and its lone occupant closer to the house near hedges which offered shelter from the elements and possible predators.

Its parents knew where this young one was and continued to care for it. That bit of red showing is not an injury but a berry that fell from a nearby bush.

The nest crashed down Monday morning and as of late yesterday (Wednesday) this young one was doing well, surviving overnights and a couple of downpours. Its parents kept close watch nearby, chirping loudly when we passed to check in.

We will be out of town for a few days, hopefully he will fledge and fly off before we return. And, maybe one day return to raise a family in one of our crepe myrtle trees.

Last to Leave

Crepe myrtle trees in The Frog & PenguINN yard have hosted many nests over the years, most recently two robin nests.

This was the mama robin a couple of weeks ago — sitting and waiting . . .

And this was the last hatching ready to fledge and leave the nest, but in no hurry.

Under the watchful eyes of its parent who perched on the nearby patio fence.

We didn't see any other nest-mates before they left and hope they fly off safely.

Mother's Day with Feathers

Today is a day to celebrate mothers, including this mom robin who set up home in the red cedar tree of our front yard.

While she raised her family of four young robins (chicks).

Feeding time was always a busy time as both parents feed this always hungry group..

The chicks grew very quickly  — these photos were all taken within one week. 

And soon all were gone, leaving their home neat for perhaps a new family..

Wishing all blog moms a Happy Mother's Day.

Temporary Tenant

Spring has brought a new tenant to the Frog & PenguINN yard. 

This temporary lodger is nesting in this front yard red cedar tree. It's not the first time that this little tree has hosted a family. In the past few years, several robin families found this an ideal spot.

Only the female robin can brood  the eggs which will hatch 12 to 14 days after incubation Both the male and female robin parents then play an active role in feeding the baby robins (called chicks) and will spend almost every hour searching for food, then returning to the nest every few minutes all day long, sunrise to sunset. 

Th chicks will leave the nest (fledge) about 14 to 16 days after hatching. We expect to see these young robins hopping around the yard until their wings are strong enough for flight. Meanwhile, the adult robins will be hovering close by, feeding and protecting them until they become self-sufficient — just like most parents.

DO you have any recent yard wildlife visitors?

Spring Sightings

Late in its arrival this year, Spring has finally arrived on the VA eastern shore as in many other places.

Some things that have also come with warmer temps have been  unwelcome, especially the invasive wildflowers weeds (henbit, chickweed, birds eye speedwell, cornflower) that now cover the yard.

Other sights are very welcome – ROBINS. We see them everywhere, backyard patio, lawn, rooftop and trees. Hope you’re seeing some pleasant signs of spring too.

Red Robin NOT the Bird

Red Robin is a chain of casual dining restaurants which Grenville and myself had never eaten in until yesterday as we usually avoid fast-food places. But, it was lunch time and, after spending several hours in an Apple store to download the new OSX Mountain Lion, other updates and get questions answered, we succumbed to the aroma of burgers. We had opted out of food court dining and gone to our car. Red Robin was a free-standing restaurant outside the mall. Also, Grenville reminded me of his scant breakfast 4 hours earlier.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers is a casual dining restaurant chain with a menu focused on burgers made of beef, chicken, turkey and vegan substitutes, as well as a appetizers, salads, soups, and pasta. There's also a long list of fountain-type drinks, including milkshakes. Red Robin's biggest sellers are the gourmet burgers, which account for nearly 50% of the company's food sales. The average per person meal cost is about $10, excluding a drink but including "bottomless steak fries." There are more than 100 Red Robin restaurants in 13 states across the US and Canada as well as franchise agreements with nearly 100 restaurants in 17 states and Canada.

Red Robin started in 1969 in Seattle as Sam's Tavern, later changed to Sam's Red Robin and then to Red Robin. The restaurant no longer serves alcoholic beverages and is geared toward family and teen dining. A July 2010 post featured photos of real robins and background on the Red Robin restaurants.

Grenville rated it a 5 and still prefers Fuddrucker's burgers billed (by the company) as "the world's greatest hamburger."

But, as you can see, there were no leftovers from this meal which included the cheddar burger for me and the bacon-cheddar burger for Grenville, and those bottomless stem fries, only one reorder, cause we KNOW they are bad for us.

Life Goes On . . . or NOT

In an earlier post this month, we welcomed new neighbors – a robin couple that had moved into the Crepe Myrtle neighborhood alongside our back patio. At the time, it seemed an unlikely location because of all activity in this area, both human and otherwise.

Abandonment is what we found last week – the nest and the 4 blue eggs were still there – the same as a couple of weeks ago. There hadn’t been any robin activity on the back patio in over a week before we checked the nest. Before then,  adult robins were chirping on the patio daily as we watched  from the kitchen window.

Curious to find out WHY birds would abandon a nest after eggs have been laid, I did some online research. Birds can abandon a nest that’s been discovered by a predator or simply because of too much activity in the area. Robins only abandon their eggs when something happens that tells them that they will have a poor chance of success. If it feels threatened by other animas or humans it will leave, even if eggs have been laid. In most cases, the eggs will not have been fertilized and would not contain any baby birds.

Shortly after we found this abandoned next, Grenville found another one in this cedar tree on back patio. The nest held 3 newly-hatched baby robins. Since the mother robin was very vocally active about our finding the nest, we decided to check on them in a week or so.Unfortunately, this one was in the lower branches of the tree and easy prey for predators and it was was discovered. When we checked it a week later, it was empty as shown here.

In such a short time, the young robins could not have developed enough to leave on their own. The predators might have been other birds or feral cats in the area.

This week we spotted several robin couples active in the back yard; hopefully there is more nesting activity. And, we would be glad NOT to find the location of any nest(s).

New Neighbors

A couple was recently spotted in the neighborhood and for a couple of weeks, they were seen checking out various living arrangements for temporary nesting.

This is the neighborhood.

Once the selection was made, they started (forgive the expression) feathering their nest. Here is their new home. It’s in what’s called the crepe myrtle development, a desirable row of trees alongside The Frog & PenguINN. The nest was set up on the first tree. (We planted these trees as sticks about 7 years ago — the neighbors snickered quite a lot then. But we watered them and now have a mature row of these southern beauties.)

The nest is not high up in the tree and this location is a bit surprising because there are were dual bird feeders on a pole directly behind the first tree. Many of Unwelcome Visitors —such as blackbirds, starlings, grackles and even a hawk are known to frequent the area. As a home security measure, the feeders have been relocated to the front yard to keep possible predators from invading the neighbor’s privacy.

Today, we discovered that the couple has started a family.

Updates will be posted when possible.

When the Red Red Robin . . .

What do robins, hit songs, and burgers have in common?
More than you might think – as  you will find out in this post.

Meanwhile, there’s been a lot of robins in and around the F&P backyard this spring-summer. We’re caught some of the offspring in the yard – not actually – only through the lens.

Thanks to Red Red Robin songwriter Harry Woods (more details later). First, some “awww” photos.

   There’s nothing quite as tasty as worms – if you’re a baby robin.

 

Proud mother and fledgling.
Notice any family resemblance?

Ready for my close-up now

     L-U-N-C-H

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     Good looking little guy and a good model

OK, now some answers  . . . (What were the questions?)

When the Red Red Robin Comes Bobbin’ Along ( Harry M. Woods ) was a hit in the mid 1920s and recorded by several popular singers including “Whispering” Jack Smith and Al Jolson who had a #1 hit. In 1952, Doris Day recorded another hit version. The song inspired the name of the Red Robin American casual dining restaurant chain, which started as “Sam’s Red Robin.” Sam, the original restaurant owner, sang in a barbershop quartet which often sang the tune. The business was originally called “Sam’s Tavern” but was renamed after the song in the 1940s. The restaurant, located in Seattle at the corner of Furhman and Eastlake Avenues E. near the University of Washington, became a popular student hangout.

In 1969, Gerry Kingen, a Seattle restaurant entrepreneur bought the business, renamed it  to Red Robin and expanded it. Today there are over 400 Red Robins throughout the U.S. and the chain is known for gourmet burgers, bottomless steak fries and freckled lemonade. Its Royal Red Robin Burger  has a fried egg on the patty. The original restaurant closed in March 2010 reportedly because of  costly maintenance for the old building.

Rockin' Robin is a song written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas and recorded by Bobby Day (born Robert James Byrd) an early American rock and roll and R&B musician. In 1958 Day’s solo recording was a a “one-hit wonder” and reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold record.

Despite numerous recordings with various record labels, Day never achieved another Top 40 hit. But, he was also a songwriter, and his credits include Little Bitty Pretty One popularized by Thurston Harris (1957), Clyde McPhatter (1962) and the Jackson Five (1972) and  Over and Over which was a hit for the Dave Clark Five (1965).