We have uninvited houseguests this year :-)

[vtlion]

Living underneath our deck this week I discovered...











A proud mama...
















...and her family



How adorable is that?!?!?!

I hope they make it through the summer.  They are only a few feet off of the ground  .  Fortunately for them, this neighborhood has very few cats lurking around.

[Nepix]

good picture, its a good thing you dont have a large amount of cats, because they would be considered a 5 star meal

[Jughead]

Hmm first time I've saw Baby Robins.Ijust about seen Everything Else though.

[makenzie71]

spiffy...we have killdeers hatching left and right here but so few make it because of the cranes and cats.

[yamahonkawazuki]

just dont go anywhere near the nest if you can avoid it. ive seen robins abandon a nest because of this. trust me it can be a pain in the royal ass fostering them

[vtlion]

I had that thought already.  After snapping a few pictures, I haven't gone back under the deck this week.  I've stopped having my morning coffee on the deck these days.  Instead I go out on the front porch; and of course we stopped letting the dog out on the deck to sunbathe in the afternoon. 

The one area where I am not willing to compromise is the grill.  I am MAN and I WILL have my flame-seared mammal flesh this summer *grunts* *pounds chest* .  Mamma and pappa bird will just have to deal with that 

[jake42]

You're artificially messing with Natural Selection. If mama bird was dumb enough to build her nest where it's easily accessible to predators instead of high up in a tree somewhere, then those babies are gonna be the bird equivalents of 19 year old squids on gixxer 1000's with flip flops and wife beaters on.


Jake

[vtlion]

Messing with natural selection?!?!?!

Buddy, I AM NATURAL SELECTION!!!!

That robin had the good sense to build on MY deck instead of some A-hole's who would have caused trouble.  If you asked me, this bird's ability to recognize nice people's decks over mean people's decks and exploit the newly available bio-space generated by human deck-building activity is a favorable trait in this environment.

Yes, I would say this bird is indeed the fittest of all the robins in the neighborhood.... so there 

[jake42]

I smell a dissertation topic there.  Evolution of spacial recognition in robins as evidenced by their ability to choose which decks to build under.

May I call you Darwin.

[scratch]

It's allright, I have a pair nesting in one of my rain gutters over the carport...til it starts raining in 6 months or so.

[frankieG]

my great grandmother would say that is a sign of good luck/fortune

[pandy]

Awwww...any pic updates? 

[vtlion]

I'm sorry to say that only one chick is left.  No sign of the other one, or of the third egg.   

On the plus side, the remaining one is looking chipper.  I'm afraid, though, that whatever got the other one will come back soon for this little guy.

[yamahonkawazuki]

yeah they like your deck  but, i guess you can only pray for the best

[pandy]

Sorry to hear there's only one left, but s/he's a cutie! 

[bettingpython]

Snake is what it sounds like since it got the egg too.

[vtlion]

Junior is hanging strong and looking healthy.   

[pandy]

 

[JBR8387]

haha this thread is awesome! You crack me up, vtlion, and you seem like an ultra-cool person 

[spc]

AWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I love birds!!!!!!!!!  I hand raised a couple of mallards once........They used to sleep by my door ( inside) at night and go to the pond during the day.   I miss living out in the country