I have a sliding door that leads to my back deck.

[LuckyCharms]

There is a 3 headed motion light just outside the door.

A robin built a nest on the light several weeks ago.

She hatched a couple eggs, and the babies are hanging around me. They are assholes. For some reason, they hop around my legs when I am outside gardening. They have those spikey feathers on their heads. I talk to them. I ask them why they are being so jerky, etc.

I didn't remove the nest after the babies were out, because I kind of like it there.

A mourning dove took over the nest. Both the mother and the father tend to the nest, I think. I talk to them too. They let me get about one foot away from the nest, so I talk to the mama every time I exit the door. These birds are so beautiful it breaks my heart. I tell the mama i'm proud of her, and I swear she gets happy looking.

One baby is still in the nest, the other one was sitting out in the mulch where I was working today, removing old mulch. I almost didn't see the little one, she blended in so good. So I just kind of kept and eye on her and talked to her. The mama flew down to her and started beating her wings against the baby. That must be how they teach them to fly. The baby flew up onto my fence and sat there for a long time. She was still there when I went in the house. I anticipate the other baby will be out of the nest tomorrow.

[LuckyCharms]

1. Here's a pic of the nest when the robin was in it.

[BComplex]

2. What a great story!

[louzke9]

4. Thank You for sharing...

that great story and being so patient with Mother Nature. You (if you want) can google bird behavior for specific species. Birds differ somewhat in their behavior during their life cycles. Even their tweets/calls. A mourning dove who "whos" only three times means they have a nest nearby!

[pazzyanne]

3. Thank you for a wonderful Friday night story.

It helps the rest of Friday news go down a little easier.

[democrank]

5. Wonderful Birdland story

[FakeNoose]

6. The birds must hate it when you turn on the light?

I would think the heat and brightness of the bulbs would be inhospitable to them.

[Boomer]

7. This made my morning n/t

[bmbmd]

8. Eastern phoebes

Have been nesting on a blade of our porch ceiling fan for six straight years. They have already raised two broods this year and are working on their third- four little eggs.

[Alliepoo]

9. Such a nice story to start the day!!

Thanks!!

[Fla Dem]

10. You're so lucky to have that wonderful exoerience. Great story.

[Rollo]

11. A few years ago I had a series of mourning dove nests in the back yard...

The birds built them on top of a rolled up bamboo fence stood on end inside a sort of alley by an out building. I got some photos, which I'll try to post. The nest was about eye height for me, but generally the parents were cool as I walked by as long as I didn't make any sudden movements or come too close. It was fun watching the chicks fledge and all, too.

Then the third set of eggs go laid, and hatched, but some predator got to them. I'm thinking it was the crows, which were getting pretty pesky around that time.

Since then the doves haven't returned to that spot, but I have found some of their nests in other odd locations.

[Marthe48]

12. Nice to hear about the babies

We've had robin families in the back yard every year for years. They are wary, but sometimes drop their guard. A couple of years ago, I noticed 2 young mourning doves hanging out in the front, by my rhododendren. The young birds always look so new, don't they? I read up on doves, and the babies outgrow the nest in a few days, so Mom and Dad park them somewhere near and take care of them until about 28 days. I noticed the new doves moved to the back yard, and stayed there most of the summer. I put seed out all year, but not as often in the summer. There is water out there too.

One of my friends described a successful hatching of tadpoles in her water feature and a large number of them morphing into tiny toads. Hearing about the young life makes me happy. Happy First Day of Summer!