Round Robin and the community nest

Spring has finally sprung and tis the season for robin nesting. My husband and I have an outdoor light in our yard that has become a popular nesting spot for robins. I first noticed it a few weeks ago when I walked to the mailbox and the Mama Robin was aggressively squawking at me.

According to “All About Birds,” both parents aggressively defend the nest area and we have found this to be true. They emit a series of alarm calls that distract predators (squawking at us). When the nestlings hear the alarm call, they duck down low in the nest and remain silent so they to go undetected by predators (including crows). It has taken time, but the Mama Robins have learned to trust us and stopped squawking when we would go outside.

The diligence and determination of the Mama robins is something to witness. She stays on the nest through rain, wind, and whatever else the elements bring. My husband purchased meal worms to help feed her during the bad storms we’ve had recently. Thankfully, her babies were hatched safely and left the nest. Mama number two has now begun her nesting journey.

The quintessential early bird, American Robins are common sights on lawns across North America, where you often see them tugging earthworms out of the ground. Robins are popular birds for their warm orange breast, cheery song, and early appearance at the end of winter. Though they are familiar town and city birds, American Robins are at home in wilder areas, too, including mountain forests and Alaskan wilderness. (allaboutbirds.org).

It is considered to bring good fortune to see one, and it is also said to bring good fortune to make a wish on one because legend holds that wishes made on robins are granted.

An American Robin can produce three successful broods in one year - in this case, we are still in for one more at our house! On average, though, only 40 percent of nests successfully produce young. Only 25 percent of those fledged young survive to November. Sadly, only about half of the robins alive in any year will make it to the next. Despite the fact that a lucky robin can live to be 14 years old, the entire population turns over on average every six years. (allaboutbirds.org).

Robins eat a lot of fruit in fall and winter. Interestingly, when robins eat honeysuckle berries exclusively, they sometimes become intoxicated. Robins eat different types of food depending on the time of day: more earthworms in the morning and more fruit later in the day. The meal worms my husband put out for the Mama birds was eaten quickly.

Robin roosts can be huge, sometimes including a quarter-million birds during winter. In summer, females sleep at their nests and males gather at roosts. As young robins become independent, they join the males. Female adults go to the roosts only after they have finished nesting.

The oldest recorded American Robin was 13 years and 11 months old.

American Robins are common birds across the continent. You’ll find them on lawns, fields, and city parks, as well as in more wild places like woodlands, forests, mountains up to near tree line, recently burned forests, and tundra. During winter many robins move to moist woods where berry-producing trees and shrubs are common. (allaboutbirds.org).

Our robin nest is well positioned in our yard light and it is extremely thick. I actually pushed on it after the first babies left the nest to see if it would easily move. It would not. The nest is nestled in there and hard as concrete. We expect the babies to be born any day now and then Mama will nurture them until they move out in about two weeks. It will be interesting to see how many more Mama robins will use what has become our community nest

(Source: allaboutbirds.org).