The birds at Fotherdale have been very busy looking for nest sites. I was a little alarmed when this robin decided it fancied the tyre on the back of the Landcruiser. Whilst I would love to let it nest there, I need my car everyday and so I moved it before the robin got too far on with its structure. But despite the fact that I drove it 40m away to the car park outside my gallery, the robin found it and carried on building!!! I will need to set off on a longer drive later today to discourage the robin before it gets any further - otherwise this could become a very expensive nest box!
Robins will nest on or near the ground in hollows, nooks and crannies, climbing plants, hedgebanks, tree roots, log piles - anywhere that provides a concealed cavity. But they are famous for choosing all kinds of unlikely locations. A friend of mine found a nest in the tool pockets of his shed.
One year a robin perched on the spout of an old kettle in my garden. Seeing it there gave me the idea for the painting below. I used to use the kettle to keep plant labels in, but seeing the robin so familiar with it I decided to nail it to the fence and turn it into a nest box. The robin took to it easily. I watched as the female built the nest, creating a cup out of dead leaves and moss and lining it with hair.
