Here in New England, the American Robin (Turdus turdus migratorius) start their breeding season in April and it runs through July. They form bond pairs, and will have up to three broods, or sets of eggs, per season. Before she lays her eggs, the female will build a nest, a new one for each brood. The following is a daily journal of an American robin perched above our front door.

April 25th - Wednesday
Robin's first sighting includes twigs, grasses, trash, and moss on our front porch. She has started to lay the groundwork for her nest on our ledge.

April 26th - Thursday
More materials acquired and the nest has really started to take shape. Robins will start their nest with coarse grasses, twigs and other big materials. She flies them up to the ledge and scratches them around to form a circle. Nearby house sparrows are stealing some of her materials.

April 27th - Friday
She has placed softer material, such as mud and grasses, inside the nest and has started to work on the interior. We have noticed her in the morning only, with her leaving for the day around 10:30 am.

April 28th - Saturday
She has shaped out the interior nicely and the nest (to us) looks to be finished. Robins will typically use their breast to form the cup of the nest.

May 1st - Tuesday
We did not see her at all this morning. However, on our way to lunch we have noticed her in the nest, and she had been there for quite some time. This is not her usual behavior from the previous days. She left her nest around 2:00pm, we assume to feed, and we used this opportunity to examine her nest. Look what we found......

May 2nd - Wednesday
Robin was not seen first thing this morning, however, she did show up at her nest around 10:00am. So did the painters. We had our porch painted this morning, and at first, our robin flew away, but she has since come back and nested while the painters finished up their work. And they weren't the only ones working, we've got twins!
 
Robins will lay on average 3-5 eggs, and will incubate them for 2 weeks. So bookmark this page because she still has some work left to do.

May 3rd - Thursday
Our mother has been there all morning, sitting tight on her nest, even as foot traffic comes in and out of the office. I checked the nest this morning to find only two eggs. However, after lunch, a second check revealed three eggs in the nest! So far our robin is laying an egg a day, with today's observation suggesting this takes place in the morning. We will examine this trend closely from now on.

May 4th - Friday
For the second day in a row, we have checked her nest in the morning to find the same number of eggs. However, just like yesterday, an afternoon check has found a fourth egg. She should be almost finished with laying her eggs, and her concerns will turn solely to incubation.

May 8th - Tuesday
After the long weekend, a morning check has found the same number of eggs in the nest as Friday afternoon. So our mother has layed the average number of eggs at 4. While checking her nest this morning, I had the watchful eyes of both the mother and father from the line that runs in front of the building. The mother, I assume, was the most vocal. The first egg that she has laid, just finished the first week of incubation. Given the approximate two week period, her eggs should start to hatch around the 15th of this month. I snapped a quick picture of the expecting parents.

May 9th - Wednesday
Our mother has been keeping close watch over her nest, incubating and guarding. Some common predators that her eggs and young face include different types of squirrels, snakes, and birds such as blue jays, common grackles, American crows, and common ravens.

May 10th - Thursday
With the last couple of days of hot weather, our mother has been spending less time on the nest. However, she usually is perched on the side standing guard over it. She is also seen from neighboring rooftops and powerlines, but always within eyesight of her nest. A morning check this morning found her 4 eggs still intact and presumably doing well.

May 14th - Monday
It has been pretty quite and uneventful for our mother so far, which is just the way she likes it. She is continuing to incubate her eggs and can expect hatching in the next few days. Most birds incubate using their brood patch. A brood patch, is an absence of feathers that usually develops near the end of her egg laying period. Most songbirds have a brood patch on their bellies, but some have them located on their sides. The feathers typically fall out on their own, however, geese and swans will pluck theirs out and use it to line the nest. In addition, small blood vessels will develop near the skin in the brood patch, bringing warm blood closer to the surface. Here is an example of a brood patch on an Eastern bluebird.

May 15th - Tuesday
This morning our mother has been spotted frequently on the cup of her nest leaning in. After watching her alternate between this behavior and incubation, we could wait no longer. Once I spotted her off her nest, I quickly grabbed the camera and took some photos. Both mom and dad were screaming from their positions close by. Right on cue, two of our eggs have hatched, and if you take a close look at the bottom egg, it was in the process of hatching during this picture. Both mom and dad have been by to check on their young.

May 16th - Wednesday
I am sure that the father has been there the whole time guarding and watching over the mother and the eggs, but recently, I have spotted him more and more at the nest. He works in tandem with the mother, switching out feeding the young and gathering more food. The feeding bird will wait by the nest for the gathering bird to return, then they switch roles. As to be expected, it appears that all the eggs have hatched. It is also getting a little more dangerous for me to take these pictures!

May 18th - Thursday
There is sad news to report today. Our new fledgling robins have died of natural causes. As Rick drove by the office this afternoon, he spotted a large crow at the nest. Nearby, mom was screaming at the intruder but to no avail. Mother and father did their best, but now have to focus on starting the process all over again, maybe two more times this summer. Thanks for checking in and I will leave you with my picture taken this afternoon.