Tuesday, 29 March 2011

Robin Readbreast

I spotted this robin in the grounds.  Although a robin is called "redbreast" look closely, it actually has a red face and forhead as well.  The male and female robin are identical, they perch and watch me digging and when they see a worm, centepied, or small insect they pounce on it. They are territorial and when you see two robins together they are a pair and usually nesting close by.  They build in dense ivy, holes or open fronted nest boxes.  The nest is built by the female and four to six sky blue eggs are incubated by her.  The young are fed by both parents and leave the nest after about two weeks.  If you spot a robin with a beak full of worms it it bringing them to feed the nestlings. When the nestlings leave the nest they are brown with yellow-brown spotted head and chest.  It is at this stage that you can hand feed the bird, if a young bird gets used to hand feeding it will come back every day to be fed and will perch on your hand to eat. We have young robins in the garden every year.

The robin has a loud singing voice and can be seen high up in the branches singing to mark out its territory.

Can you name the tree it is perched in.  (HINT, black buds and hurleys are made from its wood).

1 comment:

Ms. Dunne said...

Hi Mary, It's the ash tree. Elanna, Josh M, Luke and Zach

Are there any robin's nest in our garden at the moment? Krystian

Are any birds making nest in the camera box yet?
Aleksandra

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