[rec.birds] robins and springtime

@utzoo.uucp (Jim Rising) (02/08/88)

Actually, the robin is a poor harbinger of spring in the northeast
because a few manage to winter there.  In Toronto, we have they year
round, with numbers in the winter very depedent upon the berry crop.
Nonetheless, there did seem to be some movement into the area during
the warm weather in late January.

--Jim Rising
-- 
Name:   Jim Rising
Mail:   Dept. Zoology, Univ. Toronto
        Toronto, Ontario, Canada    M5S 1A1
UUCP:   {allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!rising

jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) (02/11/88)

> Actually, the robin is a poor harbinger of spring in the northeast

I saw a big flock of robins hanging out south of Miami in the
Homestead area Tuesday.  I have never seen them in a flock
before.  I assume they were getting together for the trip home.
I know they weren't vacationing here because they didn't have
those little self-adhesive name tags...

                        HI.  My Name is
                         R. Redbreast

                 HOLIDAY MIGRATION TOURS, Inc.


(From the Florida Keys via Indianapolis through the miracle of
modern telecommunications.)
 
-- 
	Joyce Andrews King                      
	ihnp4!inuxd!jla
	AT&T, Indianapolis

baxter@navajo.UUCP (Ray Baxter) (02/12/88)

In article <1150@inuxd.UUCP> jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) writes:
>> Actually, the robin is a poor harbinger of spring in the northeast
>I saw a big flock of robins hanging out south of Miami in the
>Homestead area Tuesday.  I have never seen them in a flock
>before.  I assume they were getting together for the trip home.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I seem to recall reading that adult and
young male robins return to their nesting sites before the females.
These birds hangout together, at first in a jocular manner but later
becoming more competetive.  When the females finally arrrive some males
have managed to obtain desirable territories, and the rest are out of
luck until next year.

When I noticed flocks of robins last spring I assumed that it was
composed of these males.  If your flock is similar, it would mean that
they are home.

By the way, I also seem to recall that not all robins are migratory in 
the sense of going south in the winter and north in the spring.  The
flocks of males can assemble from the local population of overwintering
birds.

hjh@hpldola.HP.COM (Heather Hubbard) (02/19/88)

I saw my first robin of the year last Sunday (Feb. 14). It was
wonderful spring-like weather (in the 40s). Spinach is sprouting
in my garden. 

It snowed two days later.  But I know spring is coming!

(but first, some good spring skiing!!)

Heather Hubbard
Colorado Springs
hpldola!hjh

jbh@hpcndm.HP.COM (Joel Hurmence) (02/25/88)

I hate to dampen your propects of spring (:-), but robins are year-round
residents here in Colorado. (I know they stay the winter here in Fort 
Collins, so I expect they stay the winter in the "balmy" Springs, too.)

Still, the spinach may be a good sign of spring ...

Joel Hurmence
{hplabs|ihnp4}!hpfcla!j_hurmence