It’s always wonderful to be in the bush at a this time of year as there is an abundance of new life everywhere you look.
I don’t even have to go far at all as I have new life quite literally just outside my window.
A pair of Bearded Scrub Robins have returned for the second year in a row and have built a nest in the electricity box on the veranda outside my room. After seeing the adults fly in and out of the box a few times I managed to sneak a quick look into the nest and was very happy to see that there were three eggs.
I had to contain my excitement and stop myself from checking the nest everyday for fear of scaring the female off as she is the one who incubates the eggs, so I decided to wait 11 days and check again as that is the average incubation period. After about that time (I did lose track of the days) I popped my head in to have a quick look and saw that all three eggs were still there. The very next day I saw that they had hatched. They were naked with dark pinkish skin and eyes closed which is typical of altricial chicks (meaning that they are incapable of moving around on their own soon after hatching, so they are fully dependent on their parents for food, heat and protection).
The three chicks at about four/five days old.
One of the adults returns to the nest with some food for the chicks. It is difficult to tell if it is the male or female as the sexes are alike and both will feed the young.
At about 7 to 8 days their eyes are fully open and as you can see the feathers have started to develop. Unfortunately there are only 2 left as the third most likely died from starvation as it would have been out competed but its siblings for food.
It has been wonderful to witness this process, from the beginning when I first started seeing the adults flying in and out of the electricity box, to seeing the sweet little chicks and now watching how the adults are constantly busy flying back and forth with insects to feed their young.
Having already lost one chick to an unknown cause, I really do hope that the remaining two survive as it would be lovely to see them learning to master the art of flight one day soon…
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Thanks for sharing! We are on the opposite emisphere side so it’s wintertime and birds fill their bellies waiting for spring robins included… it’s very interesting to see differences and similarities in European robins and South African ones
Amazing to have the birds return a second year to nest in your “garden”. Lovely pics.
Why is it that the bird calls in the early morning help you start your day?! thank you Victoria
with a camera in a nestbox you can follow the process on your computer without disturbing !
Amazing physiological development in such a short period. I would love to witness the early attempts at flying.
How lovely to be able to watch these chicks grow.
What a delightful story Tayla, so very special to enjoy the whole cycle so close to your door..makes one feel a little bit like the godmother. 👌💖🙏
So interesting to see the hatched chicks, naked and helpless. I think I’ve only seen them fully developed …… good spotting!
What sweet pictures! Hopefully they both survive now.
It isn’t only the big 5, sometimes we overlook the nature on our doorstep – quite literally.
I never knew there was more than one species of Robin, so many thanks
Great story Tayla, thanks for sharing. It always amazes us how close you all are to even what seems like the smallest experiences!
Hi Tayla. Thank you so much for the lovely pics of this little bird family. Will you keep us posted on these two chicks and their parents? Thanks so much. Wendy M
Thanks for posting this wonderful story and accompanying photos!