Expert: Bluebird Bob Walshaw - 6/15/2010

Question
Hi,
I have been watching a robin and her nest from my office window for a couple weeks.  There were 3 blue eggs, one laid each day.  On Sun. am I noticed that she was sitting on the edge of the nest and looked as though feeding or caring for her babes. I could no longer see blue, but saw some small fluttering, so realized the eggs must have hatched.  Now it is Tues. morning, and i haven't seen the robin for hrs.  I noticed a different looking bird (might be a dove) sitting in the nest and on the edge poking around.  Should I do anything?  I can look out a bedroom window down into the nest but there are too many branches for me to actually see inside.  It looks empty to me, but the color could blend with the nest.  I thought the robin wouldn't leave her babies until they were able to leave the nest.  And could they leave the next after only a few days??

Answer
Unfortunately Robins with their open nests have many predators. Climbing snakes, Blue Jays, etc., etc. It sounds as if something like this has happened, as the young take some three weeks to mature. However predators have their place, mostly taking the sick, weak, dumb and the slow, thus helping to keep the species strong. This is why many birds have several families each year. If they all survived we would be up to our hips in birds.