Birding/Baby Robins

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Expert: - 7/27/2006


Question
A robin nested in a window box on my deck.  There are 3 babies now that are a couple of days old.  How do they learn to fly?  I ask because there is no practice space in the window box - a 4 foot drop to the deck on one side and an 18 foot drop to the yard on the other side.  Can, or even should, I try to position furniture, other plants, other things on the deck that might offer the opportunity for short flights?  The nearest tree branch is at least 15 feet away.

Thank you.

Answer
Birds like robins spend about two weeks in the nest and then leave the nest before they can fly. They willl spend another two weeks or so on the ground until their feathers grow longer and only then do they try to fly. Their parents will feed them on the ground until they can fly. They jump out of nests unable to fly all the time - people think they fall out but they simply jump. You don't need to do anything except let nature take its course. Roger Lederer at Ornithology.com

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Roger Lederer

Expertise

Any and all about WILD birds - the science of ornithology. Information about birdwatching, ecology, conservation, migration, behavior, banding, rehabilitation, feeding, songs, binoculars, identification, and careers in ornithology. No questions about pet or caged birds, please.

Experience

Have a PhD and over forty years as a professional ornithologist - research, teaching, author, speaker, webmaster of Ornithology.com . Have written thirty scientific papers, three bird field guides, a textbook in ecology and two recent books entitled "Amazing Birds" and "Birds of New England". Have traveled to over 90 countries watching birds.

Education/Credentials
PhD in Zoology/Ornithology; Emeritus Professor of Biological Sciences; former Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at California State University, Chico

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