Posted by karen glait on May 7, 2008

Q: we have a beautiful robins nest in front of one of our windows under the roof of our house. there are three baby robins in the nest that are about a week old and they are doing great. mom and dad robins are doing a great job of taking care of them and we have been able to observe everthing. Needless to say my 10 year old daughter and the entire family have become extremely attached. we are worried though about their leaving the nest. it is about 3 stories high. will the babies be able to fly out of the nest or do they fall out.? If they fall , will they be ok or is there something we can do to keep them safe? Do we bring the nest to the ground or maybe a trampeline below the nest? thank you for your help

karen

Habitat: suburban/yard

State: Indiana

Habitat: suburban/yard

A: It's always good to hear that people are enjoying wildlife - watching the nesting process of these Robins is especially important for children to experience too! As simple as it sounds, the best thing you can do is to be as removed from the birds as possible. Although you have the best of intentions, human intervention almost always has a down side. The babies will leave the nest when they're ready and flutter to the ground without mishap, I'm sure. Any kind of interaction you might try with the birds could have really negative results so please, just leave well-enough alone and observe from afar.

Once the babies leave, they're called fledglings and the parents will continue to feed them for awhile. The babies won't return to the nest but will live in low bushes/shrubs around your home as their flying ability improves so don't worry about that. Any cats in the area should be strongly encouraged to stay away! Best of luck to you and your family of Robins.

John Wiessinger ( May 8, 2008)