Robin eggs have a distinct baby blue colour.
American robins are easy to spot with their distinct rusty red breast plumage.
Interesting robin facts:
• It is estimated that the entire
population of robins turns over about every six years.
• During late fall and winter
robins can be found heav- ily intoxicated from eating fruit and berries that have fermented. They have difficulty flying and have been seen falling right out of trees after consuming the berries.
• The global breeding popula-
tion of American robins is esti- mated at 310 million with 45 per cent of that in Canada.
An adventurous robin fledgling in an evergreen tree.
American kestrels. Robins spend much of their time on the ground as they search for insects and worms making them easy prey. The American robin’s diet is a combi-
nation of insects and berries. Insects like earthworms, beetle grubs and grasshoppers make up about 40 per cent of their diet while the other 60 per cent is a mix of berries and fruit like crab apples and mountain ash berries. When searching for insects, robins use a multitude of skills like their strong
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vision and sharp hearing. Studies have shown that robins can even hear worms underground. They will tilt their heads from left to right to detect movement in the soil then pounce upon the spot and pull out their catch. Robins take full advantage of human activities like freshly mowed lawns, sprinklers and freshly turned soil to find food. They will even come to birdfeeders for meal worms, suet and raisins. h
Sherrie Versluis owns the Preferred Perch Wild Birds and Specialty gift store in Winnipeg, Man.
• There have been increasing
numbers of partial and full albino robins seen throughout North America. This is also the case with other ground-feeding birds like common grackles, dark-eyed juncos and many native spar- row species. Unfortunately, this anomaly has been linked to the excessive use of lawn chemicals and pesticides. Consider switch- ing to more natural alternatives for your own health and the health of wildlife.
Early Spring 2016 • 31
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