The day came. Actually it all happened over a couple of days. Days that contained both happiness and sadness.
The first baby to leave the nest, did so by hopping all around the yard and then under the fence into the neighbor’s yard. I wasn’t too worried about him because I could still see the parents feeding him and I knew the neighbors didn’t have any dogs or cats that roamed around in their yard. I figured he would be safe there. Later that evening, he was back in my yard. The last time I saw him, he was headed to the fence again, hopping and flapping his wings. I’m pretty sure he finally got off the ground and took to the skies. He seemed to have the desire to fly.
The second of the three was a little slower getting started. It was the next day that he made his move. He had a little bit of a hard time getting out of the tree. He made it about half way down, and then held on to a branch for quite a while before making that final leap. Once down, he also hopped all over the back yard but when he went under the fence, he headed for the front yard. This concerned me a bit for his safety, but when I finally found him, he had found a new spot, nestled in the hedge at the front of the house. Not only that, one of the parents was also present, feeding him. Seeing how he made it to the top of the hedge, I’m certain that he has developed the skills needed to leave as well. This morning when I checked, there was no sigh of him or the parent. Fly free little buddy.
The third little guy…well, he didn’t make it. It was very sad, but I had a feeling from the past couple of days that something was wrong. He just wasn’t as big as his siblings, and also didn’t seem to have the energy or strength. I watched as the parents kept feeding him, hoping that he would have a growing spurt, but it never happened. He just wasn’t growing. I know that is how nature works and all, but it was still sad. So long little buddy.
So thus ends my adventure with the baby robins. They came and went just like that, but not without leaving a mark.