Fledgling

Yesterday morning, before I was even out of bed, Jim found a young robin in front of the garage and brought it in to me. In a wheel, in the rafters of our garage, one of our resident Robins has built a nest, so I was quite sure that it was a fledgling from that nest. I temporarily put it in a cardboard box and researched online to determine how old it was and if it needed my care. I found that if the young bird is able to grasp your finger then it is old enough to have left the nest. Apparently, Robin fledglings leave the nest unable to fly and spend a few days on the ground, being fed by their parents and earning flight status. Sure enough, when I placed the bird under my Burning Bush, it began chirping and within five minutes, Mom arrived with a tasty worm. We've all enjoyed keeping an eye on the little one's progress during these two days. Atira has been particularly vigilant. It must be the mothering instinct. She saw him take several short little flights across the lawn today.The fledgling is not nervous when we approach it and seems to even like our company. This being the case, I chose to take the bird inside for the Saturday night to keep it from becoming a midnight snack for some marauding mammal. The parents feed their young until late in the evening and then begin again just before sunrise, so I brought it into the house around 8:40 and made sure I had placed the fledgling outside again by 4:30 am. All went well so I have brought him in again tonight. He settled down almost immediately and I haven't heard from him since. Now it's time for bed. Morning will arrive early!