Survival of the fittest

This is a difficult post. Nothing is assured once a baby leaves the nest.  I was watching the triplets when a neighbor came over. "There's a little  bird over there, (pointing), that doesn't look right".  I assumed that she had seen a bird anting which can be mistaken for a dead bird. I assumed wrong.

On the ground was a newly fledged robin and something was definitely the matter. This baby was dusty. I've never seen a dusty baby. Its eyes didn't look good.  This all happened in less than ten minutes. First thought- get his baby to Wild Bird Hospital. Those are maternal instincts running amok, but before running it's necessary to assess the situation.  The father appeared with food. No response from the baby. The father poked the baby in head to get its attention. No response. Watch the father's attention.

No reaction, so the father flew off. Parents robins know when survival is not possible.  I had seen the baby stand. I wanted to see if this baby could hop or use its wings.

It scrabbled around in a circle, no hopping, no proper wing use.

A baby with a damaged leg can be helped. A baby with a broken wing can be helped. I passed my hand in front of baby's face. No reaction.  Could baby see? Possibly not. Internal problem? No sign of trauma. Would this baby survive a fast trip to Bird Hospital. Another minute went by. My brain was playing, "Erlkoenig" the Goethe poem, Schubert Lied, a father racing through the night to get help for his sick son.

 

Then there was a big natural clue. A fly landed on baby, the kid of fly that lays eggs  that develop into maggots. The flies know when something internal is happening.

 

Another minute passed. I knew how this would end. I told my neighbor to stand by so that nobody stepped on this baby. I ran upstairs to get necessary burial materials, rubber gloves, paper towels for a shroud and a plastic bag for "burial".  I got back to the garden in two minutes. The baby was surrounded by the flies, lying on its side, deceased.  "Erkoenig",  der Vater, "Er haelt in Armen des aechzende Kind, Erreicht den Hoff mit Muehe und Not; In seinem Armen das Kind war tot". This was not the first dead baby of the season.  Robin parents can have four broods during the nesting season, maybe 12 babies. If three survive till adulthood it's a miracle. Mortality is very high in nature.

 

After taking care of the interment I resumed watching then miracle of the active triplets.