The old adage is “a picture is worth a thousand words” so I suppose I could post a slew of photos I took and call it done, but I believe I owe you a backstory. Today’s post will focus on feathers, a tale about a Mama Robin and her baby.
As I mentioned in my recent post about once again toting my camera to Council Point Park, it was the sighting of this Mama Robin and her baby that changed my mindset.
How this tale unfolded ….
The morning of Saturday, June 8th I walked from my house to Council Point Park. I had been on an extra-long outing the day before and had not stopped here first as I often do. As I neared the Park there were police officers coning off traffic and placing detour signs, so I realized it must be the Rails Rally 5K, an annual event held every June since 2016 – monies raised go toward the Lincoln Park Schools Education Foundation. I participated in 2017 (my very first 5K event), then again in 2019. (I registered in 2018 but did not attend due to rain.) The race begins at Council Point Park, then the route shifts to the streets and concludes at the Park.
I knew my furry and feathered friends would not be happy to see crowds infiltrating “their space” as a similar wariness prevails when the grass cutters arrive and, really – haven’t my Park pals dealt with enough noise and commotion since “the project” began on May 8th?
I knew there would be no “drop” of peanuts and seeds at the pavilion area as it would be jam-packed with volunteers handing out race packets, drinks and snacks. The finish line for the event is set up in the walking loop near the Safe Haven Tree.
As I stepped into the driveway I noted the already-full parking lot, then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flutter of wings as an adult Robin descended carefully onto the top of the chain link fence, positioning itself away from the barbed wires where a nest was nestled in between two barbed wire lines that were strung over the chain link fence that surrounds a utility building.
I watched Mama Robin as she popped a morsel of food into an upturned beak and quickly surmised there was only one nestling. I found myself saying “aww” with my attention focused on the nest, then cursed myself for my stubbornness in not having the camera at the ready, hooked onto my fanny pack.
I lingered about 15 minutes after Mama flew off in search of more morsels, hoping to catch another glimpse of the feeding ritual. I had to smile to myself as predictably, the nestling’s beak remained upturned the entire time.
It was getting warm standing in the hot sun, so I made an executive decision: I’d take one spin on the walking path before the race participants returned as there would be a hubbub of activity in the Park on the walking path.
I doled out peanuts and sunflower seeds in record time, then hustled home, beads of sweat trickling into my eyes as I was really “hoofin’ it” on that humid morning. I put down the treat bag, splashed cold water on my face, grabbed the camera and was headed back, on foot, minutes later.
The event’s crowd and commotion persisted, but in this tiny corner of the world, one baby bird, with its upturned beak awaited its Mama’s return with grub.
Well, both the baby and Your Roving Reporter had a long wait for that reunion. And, when it finally happened, Mama flew over, food dangling from her beak, and in a split-second, she was near the nest, plunking food into the nestling’s mouth.
Mission accomplished, her baby fed, she pivoted to fly away, then saw me. Even though I was nowhere near the nest, probably a dozen feet away, seeking the wee sliver of shade that the building was now affording me, to Mama I was a potential predator. She thus flew to and positioned herself on the utility building’s roof as she scoped me out, giving me a side-eye glance, ringed by that white circle of feathers, …
… before she finally flew off, on another worm-and-grub-finding expedition, confident I was just a pesky photographer and not intent on stealing or harming her youngster.
The race ended, photos snapped, snacks grabbed and soon vehicles funneled out of Council Point Park’s parking lot. Mama had not yet returned and the sun was high in the sky, so I decided to leave and return Sunday morning and take a stroll in my favorite nature nook as well.
So, what was happenin’ early Sunday morning?
Here are some of those photos. I suspect the baby Robin was getting a stiff neck from this open-beak position, so it decided to just look for its Mama instead.
And then, when Mama was in its sight, it would open its beak accordingly.
I finished my long stroll around Council Point Park, taking a ton of photos and stopped at Chez Robin before I headed home. The sun was shining and the camera caught the fine peach fuzz on its head as I captured one more open-beak image.
Monday, Monday.
I returned Monday morning and now the chick’s whole head emerged over the nest. I was happy I now had a fairly up-close view of this baby, even though I could not peer inside as the nest was higher than eye level for me.
I awaited feeding time and was not disappointed as Mama would miraculously appear out of nowhere with grub for her little one. One time she returned with such a small morsel, it was swallowed in a second – that’s the best you could do Mama?
By Day #3, happily she acknowledged my presence, but went on about her business. I had finally gained her trust.
Tuesday, June 11th.
In the space of four days’ time, instead of the perpetual upturned beak, I was greeted with the baby Robin scowling at me. Yes Robins, even youngsters, have perfected that glare and sullen look if you’ve never noticed. It appeared its mouth was finally in proportion to its head instead of an oversized beak. I mused that those wispy feathers around its head just contributed to its “old-man-mad-at-the-world” appearance.
Then, when it perched on the side of the nest, I figured this was most likely the day it would fledge.
“I believe I can fly, I believe I can touch the sky.”
I walked at the Park, did some errands, then swung by the Park later that day to follow up on my hunch. Sure enough the nest was empty. It was the same the following day – my feathered friends had left me behind in the dust.
After they left I mused how I had missed the bulk of the nesting activity, but, as you can see below, the nest sat atop the chain link fence, up close to the barbed wires. (What was Mama Robin thinking??) I would have no reason to swivel my head that way upon entering the driveway to the parking lot, whether on foot, or in the car.
The nest is still there.
I am glad our paths crossed under the barbed wires.
I am grateful for the Robin family guiding me back onto the walking path with my camera in tow.
I am joining Terri Webster Schrandt’s July 21st Sunday Stills Photo Challenge: Wings.
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
Gotta love mama birds!
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Yes – love and devotion for her little one. Boy did she give me a look when she returned from a food-finding mission the first day or so: “human, aren’t you gone yet?”
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Aww, what a great story, Linda! So similar to my nesting Phoebes. The closeups of the robin chick with his feather tufts are so endearing, and yes, they do pull a face. So fascinating to watch how hard mama birds work to feed their babies. I’m glad you saw the nest and got to experience the brief moment in a life of robins on the wing 🙂
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Thanks Terri. I was lucky to see the best of the nesting process, since the baby was finally big enough to be visible above the nest. Yes, mama birds work so hard to feed their young. She came back empty-beaked a few times, checked on her baby, then was gone again. It had been hot that week, so worms were likely scarce and not easily accessible. Robins have perfected the scowl, even as chicks!
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she built the nest there for protection I bet
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Yes, that’s probably true Wayne. I worried when Mrs. Cardinal built her nest in the middle of my thorny Barberry bush, but this seemed a little reckless although they were fine in the end. It is unusual that there was only one baby though – their clutch is usually bigger, at least five.
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A wonderful read and photos thanks Linda
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Thank you Brian – I am glad you enjoyed this post. It was fun to watch them!
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Wonderful photos of the baby, nest and Mom. Birds do seem to have very expressive faces. It always surprises me how quickly they grow and leave the nest.
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Thank you Rebecca – I had fun watching them and was sorry I only got to see them for a few days. Yes, birds do have expressive faces and their head tilts are funny – the same for domestic birds as I had parakeets and canaries through the years. The last four days, that baby grew up before my eyes!
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What a great series of pictures you captured, Linda and so glad they got you to bring your camera back to the park.
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Thank you Ruth. It sure was fun watching them and I was sorry I never noticed the nest before I did. About five years ago, the tree trimmers cut the lower branches off many of the trees at the Park, which was too bad as I used to see Robins building nests and could actually see into the nest as they were raising their young. So this was a treat, just like old times. I am glad too – I had such a bad attitude after seeing the destruction here that it took these two feathered souls to soften my heart a little.
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So fascinating to watch how hard mama birds work to feed their babies. Interesting you sharing Baby and the barbad wire. So pretty chick 🐥 in Nest. I like. How much day they’ve grown.
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It is fascinating to watch them grow Raj. I have watched Robins incubating the eggs, then the hatch happens and within two weeks from hatching, the babies are ready to fledge (fly on their own and leave the nest). It’s pretty amazing because they are born featherless and their feathers fill in (though they don’t have much of a tail at first) – all within two weeks.
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Thank you so much, Linda! Interesting information incubating the eggs. I watch oneday how them grow.
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Yes, they grow pretty fast Raj. When the goslings are born, they are very small and in about 10 days time, they lose their lemon-yellow color and fuzzy look and already start looking streamlined and brown-gray coloring.
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Thanks, Linda, Nice you sharing that knowledge & information. When l teenager I watched hean incubating the eggs. & Born 🐥🐣
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You’re welcome Raj. I have never seen chicks from hens except in pictures. A blogger I follow raises chickens and she has posted photos of the little ones, sometimes which she/her husband order from a company and they are delivered days after being born.
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Okay! Thanks,Linda!
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I absolutely love the backstory and I so much envy your camera and writing skills! Yes this one already had the master look of old person angry with the world!
How do you tell the difference of a Mom or Dad Robin, Linda? When I lived in Denver, CO, one of my homes had a pine tree in the front yard. Every spring or summer a Robin family came to live in it. I always thought it was a returning off spring, but I didn’t have the interest in those years of my world to research. I was in my first retirement, living in my dream home.
Life changes.
Your photos are exquisite! Yes, yes: I believe I can fly to touch the sky!!! You were so lucky to get to see this one on the edge of the nest, Linda! She took a leap, believing in one’s self!
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Thank you very much and I’m glad you love the backstory TD. I am glad I didn’t just put up photos, which at one time I thought I’d just write a paragraph and put captions under the photos and they could tell the story. But the backstory needed to be told and how watching these two birds made me go back to carrying my camera to the Park again.
Most of the female birds have dull-colored plumage or are a completely different color from the males (think Red-winged Blackbirds: female is mottled brown or the Cardinal: female is olive colored or Mallard duck: female is mottled brown, except when they molt and males and females are brown temporarily). So the male Robin is much more vibrant than the female, but they are still the same color combo of red breast and dark gray feathers and white ring around the eye, but she’s just less vibrant and she is missing a lot of feathers in the front from leaning up against the nest to feed the baby. My nesting female Cardinal last year was missing a lot of feathers as it was very cold for May and she was huddled down in a very small nest, with her body over the babies. I thought she was still incubating the eggs and then I saw how big the babies were when she fed them, so I realized she was keeping them warm with her body in the cramped nest. I could not see the nest except when I was outside on the patio.
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What a marvelous story!
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Thank you Anne! I am glad you liked it. It was very sweet to watch.
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A tale well told – and illustrated.
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Thank you Anne – it was fun to watch and I know you, an avid birdwatcher, would appreciate seeing how quickly the chick finally grew the last few days before fledging. I liked watching the Mama bird tending to her youngster.
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What a lovely story. I wish this year’s crop of baby birds well!
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I’m glad you enjoyed it Dawn. I wish I had discovered the nest earlier, but luckily I saw the best of the nestling to fledgling portion. I am wondering if Mama decided trees were scarce now so any port in a storm would do?
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You tell a wonderful story with your photos, Linda. Too bad you didn’t actually get to see the baby flying away from the nest for the first time. I had to laugh when you described the Robin’s scowl!
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Thank you Laurie. My original intention was just to do a paragraph or two and use captions for the photos … but there was so much to share that it took on legs! I wish I’d seen the baby fledge for the first time too … what a wonderful feeling that must be for them, especially since they grow in leaps and bounds to begin with. I think that baby would have said to me “I’m outta here – try and take my photo now!” Yes, adult Robins have a perpetual scowl in my opinion and the baby with those wisps of feathers, really looked angry!
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Cute story! It’s a rare thing to be in hand when the fledging occurs. I’ve watched for it many a time.
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Thank you Eilene – I wish I’d had more time to watch them, but just as well as I couldn’t see inside the nest as it was too high up so I did see the peak experience. I remember you wrote about watching a nest not long ago. A few years ago I watched a Robin’s nest in the neighborhood that I passed enroute to the Park every day. It was in the homeowner’s gutters. By the time they fledged, those babies had crowded themselves out of the nest and were perched on top most of the time. I walked by the next day and they had fledged, but not far as they were in a tree and one fledgling flew down to the fence as I passed and I got a shot of it – he/she look pretty pleased with itself.
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My biggest hope for fledging was when I was a bald eagle nest watcher in southern Arizona. Never did manage to catch the moment for the three checks we watched. But we enjoyed seeing them afterward.
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Given their size, that would be awesome to see Eilene. A local photographer goes to all the places where there are eagle nests and osprey platforms to photograph them and their chicks, from birth to fledging. It’s pretty exciting to see the youngsters taking flight through his photos.
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What neat photos and story. How fun to watch that.
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Glad you liked it and yes, it was fun watching them Kirstin. I wished I had seen the nest earlier and I would have liked to have seen that baby fledge too.
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What awesome pictures Linda! It is amazing how fast these cuties grow up!
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Thank you Diane – it was fun watching them and I was lucky to see the nest, considering how high up it was. Yes, 12 – 14 days and they’re gone!
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That is certainly not the best nesting spot! We have nests in our yard and I always want to be there when the babies leave but I miss it each and every time !
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I know – what was she thinking Susan? She must have been in a hurry and because so many trees were destroyed in the Park, she had no other choice! I wished I would have seen it fledge too … probably a bit wobbly after being cooped up in the nest all that time.
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That picture IS worth a thousand words! (But I’m happy you had lots of words to go with it!) Mama robin was working hard, traveling far and wide for those morsels of food. Can you imagine if she had 3-5 babies? Love the little scowl on the baby. Maybe Mama will build her next nest a little closer to a food supply and farther away from barbed wire. Great story and set of pictures, Linda!
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Thank you Barbara – I am glad you enjoyed it! I originally thought I’d just let the photos tell the story and put some captions in, but it was a fun story to tell and it needed words. Mama was working hard for her one baby with its endless upturned beak and the one time she fed him/her and the beak stayed open, she had a look like “gee, that’s all I could find for you!” I’ve seen a few Robin nests at the Park and in the neighborhood and never seen just one baby, so that was unusual. I figure she was out of nesting places with so many trees gone, so any port in a storm!
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Cute photos. I have mixed feelings about robins, dippy as the day is long but dedicated parents when need be. Maybe they’ve found the perfect work/life balance!
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Thanks Ally. I feel the same about robins. They are annoying when they build a nest in my light fixture, so to thwart that I have to stick something in the light fixture’s “elbow” … then they are mad and do flybys and leave me their calling card on the doors/siding. That said, they do have a pretty song and are fiercely protective of their young.
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Such fun to watch baby birds and their mamas up close. You’ve got a good camera to get such clear photos from 12 feet away–and I’m so glad you do so we could enjoy Mother Bird and Hatchling too! Btw, she looks a little thin to me. Now that the youngster has fledged, hopefully she can catch up on her own calorie-intake!
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Nancy, I really enjoyed the interaction between the mama and baby Robin. I think the worm and grub pickings might have been scarce as we had had a heat wave recently, so the ground wasn’t great for worm pulling. I think she looks thin too – hopefully the youngster can find his own food now. She did not look as ragged and thin as the cardinal I had in my barberry bushes last year. We had a cold spell in the Spring of 2023, so the mama cardinal was sleeping on top of her youngsters to keep them warm and the nest was pretty torn up and she was bedraggled looking by the time the babies fledged. I used my Canon digital compact camera for these shots. It is great and slips into my pocket or into a pouch on my fanny pack. It has zoom to 12X and I got it in 2015, so it’s been a real workhorse since day #1
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Really enjoyed this little story, Linda (kept getting interrupted while I read it… finally finished it today… 🙂 ) I applaud the robin for choosing a location that may seem unusual but also has built-in protection. I also enjoyed the fact this interaction was happening seemingly without awareness from any of the nearby throng of 5k’ers 🙂
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Thank you Dave – it was fun watching them, taking photos and then writing the story. As of yesterday, the nest is still there and in good shape. There are less trees to nest in now and she evidently didn’t think the barbed wire was a problem and that makes sense as it would thwart predators, but I was still shocked to see this. I have seen squirrels lounging, a/k/a “splooting” on the top of that same fence beneath the barbed wire.
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Within the span of a couple of days, the baby robin matured! It’s cute to see the upturned beak and then the wispy feathers on its head. Great photos, Linda, and I’m so glad you revisited the site to see the development process.
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It’s amazing Esther – just in a few days how it matured and even went from constant upturned beak to peeking over the edge, then perching on the nest and gone! Robins usually fledge 12-14 days after they hatch. And when they’re born, they are featherless with closed eyes. A few years ago, before we “met”, a friend of mine found a Robin’s nest built on her deck. She took pictures every day from the eggs to almost fledging and I used the photos in a blog post. I could not believe how quickly they grow.
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They must be eating steroid worms!!
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Yes, I believe it Esther – it went from a whimpering little chick to “I’ve got this” confidence as it perched on the side of the nest a couple of days later.
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Beautiful story in both words and pictures!
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Thank you Zazzy – I am glad you liked it. It was so heartwarming to see these two little souls and I was sorry it fledged so soon after discovering it. It was so nice to get up close to them at the end!
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Being an author is so hard. Your blog brightens the day.
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Thank you very much Barbara. I am glad to put a smile on your face. These two little souls lit up my four days that I watched them. {I’m so sorry for not responding until now. I used to have a lot of SPAM until I closed comments after 30 days. Now I never get SPAM. But today, WP has done something to the site since I last prepared a post … they have added AI items which are messing me up today. I started a post, but had to abandon it and, in going to my posts part of my dashboard to delete the first post, I saw your comment. I am frustrated with this new way – I am still using Windows 7 but recently got a new computer but have to transfer everything first. I guess I might be doing this sooner, rather than later. Again, I apologize for my tardiness in replying.]
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Better late than never. I hear your frustrations and I get it. So nice you took the time to send me a message.
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Thank you for understanding Barbara. Believe it or not, you ended up in SPAM again. I sure don’t know why. WordPress is frustrating as is the weather. We have had storms since last night.
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On the off chance the reason is at my end, I am replying. Hope this comes through without problems.
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Hi Barbara – it worked perfectly and did not go to SPAM. I found another comment in SPAM and like yours, nothing in that comment warranted sending it there. I am able to comment and respond to comments on WP but when I tried to prepare a post last night, the same thing happened as last Saturday. This latest upgrade by WP where they added the AI feature does not permit me to create a post. I now will have to work off two computers until I transfer things off.
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