iN PHOTOS: Robins raise family in nest on Summerland front door

Dwayne and Sandy Babyn of Summerland had front row seats to a nature show this month, after a pair of robins built a nest in the wreath on their front door and proceeded to raise three chicks. “It has been a delightful and educational experience,” Dwayne said. “We’ve learned a lot about birds just by watching them.” Dwayne set up a trail camera to watch the baby birds progress from eggs to hatchlings to fledglings after discovering a male robin built the nest end of May. “You wouldn’t believe it, one night I could hear something rattling on the door at 4 a.m. and the next morning when I walked out the nest was complete. It was rainy and the male was able to get a bit of mud and grass. “Days before I saw the robins on the step, cocking their heads and looking at the door. Now I know he was asking her approval on the housing site.” The couple watched remotely through the camera as each blue egg appeared, later hatching into three tiny, featherless babies. “Both mom and dad do the feeding, and while the babies had no feathers on, the mom would sleep in the nest with them at night,” Dwayne said. “We couldn’t hear (the babies), just when the parents would come and feed them, we’d hear chirps.” The chicks grew feathers and grew bigger until they could be seen standing up in the nest stretching and flapping their wings. And then they took flight. The Babyns have been sharing photographs and updates online on the bird family. “People were in love with watching the transition and learning along with us, there is a lot excitement and its educational for everyone,” Dwayne said.  READ MORE: iN VIDEO: Honey bee swarm rescued on Okanagan Rail Trail in Kelowna https://infotel.ca/newsitem/in-video-honey-bee-swarm-rescued-on-okanagan-rail-trail-in-kelowna/it105427 The Babyns enjoy putting up seasonal wreaths to make their home welcoming and consider the bird nest a sign of good luck. They will be keeping the nest in the wreath and hanging it up next spring for another bird family. “We’re empty nesters now, and we can finally use our front door again," Dwayne said. To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Ainslie mailto:sainslie@infonews.ca  or call 250-819-6089 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter .