Hi All- In retrospect (I started second-guessing myself as soon as I posted, of course) I agree with Julian and Robert that these are hackberry, with smaller berries and heavily corrugated bark. Sorry for the mis-ID on the trees! Regardless, the robins are something to look at, and flocks could have something more interesting hanging out with them...
Jesse On Thu, Jan 8, 2015 at 2:55 PM, Julian Sellers <[email protected]> wrote: > If you look closely, I think you’ll find that those trees full of > robins are actually hackberry trees (*Celtis occidentalis)*, not cherry > trees. The robins (and others) strip the cherries (*Prunus *sp.) in the > summer. > > Julian > St. Paul > > *From:* Jesse Ellis <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Thursday, January 08, 2015 12:27 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* Re: [mou-net] First robins of the year? > > 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 > -- 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
