Every year we hang the same grapevine wreath by our front door and several years ago a robin built a nest on top of it and set up shop. Four shiny blue eggs quickly appeared and hatched 12-14 days later. The always hungry baby birds grew quickly and fledged in only two weeks. Mom and Dad continued to feed them as they hopped around the perennial bed and lilac bushes for another week or so before they spread their wings and headed out into the world. The female robin didn’t waste any time and quickly laid a second clutch of eggs and the cycle repeated. I found it quite satisfying to watch this rhythm of nature in the bird world.
In subsequent years we rehung the wreath with the nest intact and, sure enough, within 24-48 hours a robin finds it and quickly goes about its business; I often wonder if it is the same robin or one of its offspring that continue using the nest from year to year. This year’s robin is quite comfortable with us and stays put when we breeze in and out of the front door. This of course keeps both the eggs and the chicks warm and happy. There are many other birds in the neighboring tall trees chirping away during spring and early summer and I wish I could view their breeding cycle as well. Unfortunately, I’m not equipped to shimmy up a tree and set up a camera so will have to be content with the annual activity in my grape vine wreath. The irrigation system is finally up and running and, along with this weekend’s rain, I bet the robins and the neighboring martins are happy with the worm fest in our yard. Other bird species quickly found our bird feeders this year including the hummingbirds. Now, if I could only figure out how to keep the grackles out of the bird feeder.