Photo © 2005 Jim Jung and licensors. All rights reserved.

Robins

While spring is still more than a month away* a few over-achieving Robins begin to appear. If they're lucky they'll find and hold the really prime Robin real estate and have a jump on their reproductive competitors come nesting time. Of course, "One Robin doesn't make a spring," and if the weather turns bad they're dead Robins - but that's the chance they take. For many winter-weary humans they're the first sign that spring will actually return.

Within a month they will begin to appear in flocks, which seem to number between six and one hundred individuals and are probably clans or extended families of related birds - though this is speculation on my part.

These flocks are more often encountered in the woods - where they forage for insects and worms by flipping over the leaves on the forest floor - than in towns and cities, but even sharp-eyed city dwellers catch an occasional glimpse of Robin flocks at this time of year.

According to folklore seeing a Robin is a luck enhancing event. Relatively few people seem to know it but all the Authorities agree that anyone who sees a Robin, makes a wish and stamps their left foot before the bird flies away are guaranteed to have their wish come true. And anyone who "stamps" a hundred Robins before Valentine's Day is guaranteed good luck and good health throughout the coming year. I've never tried out this particular belief but if any of our readers do please e-mail us and let us know your results.

* - the biological spring, that is, which begins February 20th - not the traditional equinoctial one which occurs March 20th this year.

Robins in our area are double or triple brooded - meaning that they raise two or three families per season - and April is the time when they usually begin their first nest.

Photos © 2005 Nancy Smolak. All rights reserved.

Before the arrival of suburbia Robins traditionally nested, and were residents of, the savanna. Of course the savanna is, for all practical purposes, a nearly extinct ecosystem. But fortunately for the Robins our civilization has taken to savanna-style landscaping like ducks to water. As a consequence Robins are probably more abundant now than they were at the time of first settlement.

Photo © Copyright 2004 Jim Jung and licensors. All rights reserved.

At any rate Robins are lucky birds. To have a pair build a nest near your house is guaranteed to bring the household peace, health and prosperity all through the remainder of the year.

They are also weather prophets whom the Authorities claim predict the coming summer weather by the placement of their nests. Nests built far from the trunk near the ends of branches indicate a calm summer with no windstorms. Likewise nests built high above the ground indicate the coming year will be dry, while a nest built lower to the ground under shielding branches indicates a wet season ahead. So keep an eye on your Robin's construction activities and dress accordingly.

Offsite Links:

• Cornell Lab of Ornithology American Robin page, including a link to their song.
• University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web American Robin page
• Plans for a Robin Shelf

Suggest a link! Send suggestions to Webmaster