Hey all- Robins are actually quite hardy fruit eaters in the winter. The birds you both are seeing are overwintering, as much as is possible. They may move south if conditions worsen, but if food remains available they may stay the entire season.
Here in the Twin Cities, I've noticed that many street trees (that have perhaps replaced ash and elm?) are cherries, and they seem to be supporting a good population of American Robins. I've had up to 50 individuals in my neighborhood in Saint Paul. You could probably record Robins daily if you found some preferred spots. Springs with open water can also support overwintering Robins. If you're looking for signs of spring, for me it's not the presence of Robins, but territorial behavior, foraging for worms, and singing. Right now they're hunkering down just like any bird, but if you see any of those other behaviors you can start feeling good about things again. Good birding, Jesse Ellis Saint Paul, MN On Thu, Jan 8, 2015 at 11:06 AM, Lee <[email protected]> wrote: > Good morning, > > Thanks to Alan for his message: last week I observed what appeared to > be a small [10 - 15 birds] of robins along the Mississippi bluffs in St. > Paul. I looked awhile and all the time thinking it must be some other > species, or late migrants....Or that I was losing more than I had thought. > > Thanks. > Lee in St. Paul > > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > > Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2015 08:09:52 -0600 > > From: Alan Stankevitz <[email protected]> > > Subject: First Robins of the year ... sign of Spring??? > > > > Huh. I haven's seen nor heard robins since the fall migration and this > > morning I have a flock of them outside my door. My guess is they are > > foraging down by the creek that runs through our property. > > > > Think Spring! > > > > Alan Stankevitz > > Mound Prairie, MN (Houston County) > > > > ---- > Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net > Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html > -- Jesse Ellis, Ph. D. ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
