Saturday, February 23, 2008

Migration Underway: American Robin

Last Sunday at about 3 in the afternoon as I was completing my work for the Great Backyard Bird Count, I noticed a single robin perched in the oak tree among a number of male and female cardinals.
Then, another robin appeared in the dogwood and still another appeared in the Bradford pear tree. Within a minute, there were two dozen robins in the Habitat. Clearly, a migrating flock of robins had picked the Habitat as a stop over on their way north.
They quickly found and enjoyed the water available in the tub and the flower pots. The robins mingled with the other birds and were still in the Habitat when the sun went down. I did not see them the next morning. I have not seen them since. In this 2 hour period, I saw more robins in the Habitat than will be observed throughout the spring and summer months.
Take a close look at this last photo. Notice a bird other than a robin? Who is this previously unobserved-in-the-Habitat visitor? Stay tuned. We'll talk about this fellow in our next posting.





1 comment:

  1. Anonymous12:39 PM

    White Salmon, WA: Each year on or about February 14, flocks of large robins come to feast on my holly tree. When they arrive their breasts are pale. When they leave, their breasts are plump and full of color. The robins that come later in the season are smaller. Can anyone give me some information?
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete