the Robin's Nest story May 15, 2024

From the moment on May 3rd when I came upon a Robin sitting on her nest, I knew I wanted to invest time in following this journey.  My initial thought when I saw a large mass at the bottom of a slope was that must be the porcupine people reported seeing near the pond.  I zoomed in only to see it was a bird nest with a Robin sitting on it!

On May 5th, I ventured over to the park to that location and when I noticed there were no Robins around, I scooted down the slope to have a peek in the nest.  There was one egg!  What excitement I felt!  Progress is being made in this journey!

Later that day, I painted this picture of the photo I took. My hope was that over the next couple of days I would get to see more eggs in the nest and possibly paint another picture.  

Early in the morning on May 6th, I made a quick detour down to the location.  I had done some googling about Robins and their nests and their eggs and timeframes. When I arrived at the top of the little hill, I could see she was not sitting on the nest.  I descended the slope and when I looked in the nest I saw two eggs.  I was so excited, I thought oh what a gift this is to see!

On May 8th, I made another early morning trip over to the nest.  Once again, no Robins were around. I learned they go out early to feed and then come back and she will sit on the nest the balance of the day. This would be the routine until she finished laying her clutch and then she would not leave the nest. When I saw no Robins around, I slide down the slope in the mud and discovered there were now four eggs.  Oh WOW!  Since she was not sitting on the nest, I wondered was she not ready to stay on the nest and could there be another egg on the way!

When I dropped by on May 9th during the early morning, she was sitting on the nest.  I zoomed in to capture this photo and when I saw her, I then just carried on with my walk.  Close to two hours later upon returning, she was still sitting on the nest.  

On May 14th, I finished painting this picture which I started on May 9th. I used the photo I took on May 8th as my reference.  I was going to be away for a few days and the plan was to check the nest area once I returned.  

This morning, May 15th, I made a very early morning visit to the area where the nest is.  From the top of the slope I could see she was not sitting on the nest and there were no Robins in the area.  I took a chance and went down the little hill to have a look in the nest.  It was empty!  My heart sank and I immediately felt sad!  I checked for eggs or pieces of egg outside the nest but saw nothing.  The nest appeared to be taller and the inside seemed to have less space.  It almost looked like another nest was built on top.

Nature takes its course and I wonder what transpired here over the past few days!  I enjoy so much about nature but I feel no enjoyment right now about this Robin's Nest story!  I do still feel invested and will continue to wander over that way and wonder about what may have happened!  My hope is that I will one day soon be in that area and she her back sitting on the nest!