I was cleaning out the gutters on my shed this afternoon when I found a nest on top of the down pipe at the back of the building and it had birds in it. The nest had been made when the weather was dry but we've had rain recently and the water has been running through the nest and it was soaked. Trying to be as careful as possible, I disconnected all the gutter supplying the downpipe, tie-wrapping them up out of the way so the rain ran away from the nest. While I was doing this, dad blackbird came back and sat with the chicks while I carried out the modifications, giving me the evil eye. I finished as quickly as I could and left them to it, comforted with the knowledge that they wouldn't get wet again if it rained. I'd like to have another look to make sure mum and dad came back again but I have to leave them alone now and hope for the best.
The moral of this story? Birds are not frightened away so easily, they have invested a lot in their broods and won't leave them because of a short-term disturbance.