One of my favourite birds in Southern Ontario is the pretty Robin, with it's lovely song, which to me is one of the first signs of Spring.
I will be posting a few wildlife pictures of the familiar North American Robin (Turdus migratorius), which is a member of the Thrush family and one of the most easily identifiable birds in Southern Ontario.
This Robin stayed a little too late in Fall and got caught in a snow-storm. I'm sure he left soon after this picture was taken!
Did you know that when Robins are migrating north in the spring, they don't actually sing until they get to their destination?
To hear the Robin's song, click here
In addition there are a couple of sites listed at the bottom of this page where you can find great wildlife pictures of the Robin and other species.
Most mornings in the
Spring
and
Summer
I wake to their song and they are often heard singing before a rain-fall.
Their song is the Robins way of declaring it's territory to other birds, so when you hear Robins sing in your back yard, those are the ones who have made their home there for the summer.
When the Robins sing loudly, people here sometimes say that they are "singing for rain", perhaps they know when a shower is coming.
These familiar birds are easy to identify as they have a red breast which is brighter in the male. The female is of a duller shade of red.
In young juvenile birds it is easy to see from their speckled breast feathers, that they are members of the Thrush family.
FACTS AND FIGURES
The Robin is a medium-sized bird which weighs, on average 75 g, is 25 or 27 cm long and has a wingspan of around 40cm. They can fly at a speed of 60 km per hour.
The female Robin builds the nest and lays between 3 - 5 small, blue eggs which she incubates for between 11 - 14 days.
It takes the babies two weeks to be fledged and fly from the nest.
Often, once the eggs hatch, the male will take over the duty of caring for the newly hatched chicks, while mother lays another clutch of eggs and begins the whole process again!
This mother bird is keeping her eye on us, she is careful not to draw any attention to herself while she has eggs or chicks in her nest.
Robins are known to fly during the day when they migrate and they feed on worms, insects and berries.
At dawn and dusk you will hear the pretty song of this bird.
The Robin keeps his eyes open for cats, Crows and
Blue Jays
who would love to make a meal of their eggs or nestlings and an adult
Raccoon
could eat a full-grown Robin.
We hardly ever see the Robin at the bird feeder as they seem happiest on lawns and open fields.
If you watch them carefully, you will see them cock their heads to one side - shh........ are they listening for worms?
Who knows!
But I do know that they catch a lot of worms on our lawn after we have rain.
But I'm just glad that these cheerful little fellas are some of the beautiful birds in Southern Ontario!
Let us know when you see them!
Let us know where and when you sighted your first returning Robin of the Spring. It is interesting to see when and where the first Robins are sighted, so we'd be happy to hear about your Robins!
If you get a picture, we'd love to see that too!
What Other Visitors Have Said
Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...
I live in Whitby, Ontario, Canada. It was windy last night and there were some branches that ...
HELP!!!
I have a Robin's nest on the down-spout of my eavestrough and this morning a crow came and ate three of the four babies.
I saw the fourth one on the ...
Help! How do i protect my Robins?
I'm looking for some advice on protecting 2 Robin nests and the babies when they fledge. I've done research on the internet, but some worries have not ...
Missing baby Robins
I have a nest at my upstairs window sill and a Robin had laid 3 eggs.
I watched from inside my home as the eggs hatched and lo and behold, three little ...
Robin with great imagination!
First of all, I want to tell you I saw my first two Robins on the front lawn, on March 17th this year.
About 4 years ago we spotted a Robin sitting ...
February Robin
On Valentine's Day February 14th 2011, I couldn't believe seeing a Robin feeding on the tree berries outside my front door.
It's February 6, 2011 and there was a large flock of perhaps 80 birds in our backyard.
Can they really survive ...
Serge
We had many Robins in our yard this year. However, all of sudden they disappeared. We live in Windsor, Ontario. Does anyopne know the reason? Thank you....
Raccoons and Robins
This summer a Robin made a nest underneath our deck. The first batch of 2 baby robins left the nest and I think they're safe and sound.
The mother ...
Help
We have a request for help from a reader in Woodstock, who has found a baby Robin - I found a young Robin who is unable to fly .... where can I take it ...
Baby Robin
About a month ago I noticed a nest starting to be built above the light fixture by my patio doors. After a little while I noticed a Robin hanging around ...
The broken egg and the sad Robin
My little daughter, who is 4 years old, saw a Robin's nest on top of my neighbour's electric meter box 3 weeks ago.
Everyday she looked to see the ...
Last one out is a rotten egg!
This charming picture and story are from one of our readers in St Catherines, Ontario. Thank you Natalie, for your contribution! We recently moved ...
Robins make a home
This article was submitted by one of our readers in St Thomas, Ontario, thank you Bev!
We live in St. Thomas, Ontario. Much to our surprise, a robin ...
Barbara from Peterborough told us that she saw the ...
My back yard Robin!
Last week my Dad and I saw a Robin looking around the roof that covers our deck.
A couple of days later she started building the nest and after she ...
January 30, 2012 and they're here!
Not rated yet
I went to work, as usual, and when I got to the front of my office building in St. Catharines, Ontario, there were at least 25 robins roosting in the trees ...
Robins never left
Not rated yet
All winter long I have been watching at least 10 Robins sit in my backyard.
They go to a neighbour´s flowering pear tree and they are eating something ...
January 2012 Robins
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Today is February 1 2012 and I just saw my third sighting of Robins in my back yard.
Last week I saw three of them on two consecutive days.
Why ...
Friendly Robin
Not rated yet
I have a young Robin, that when I go out my back door, will fly up to me and land on my shoulder.
Because this bird is so friendly, I have many pictures ...
Company for the Summer
Not rated yet
At the first sight of spring (which was a little delayed here in Calgary), my family noticed that we had a visitor busily building her nest up high on ...
Robin moves with home owner
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My son had a Robin that nested every year over the security light on the front of his garage.
She became very tame and would feed her chicks and do ...
Robin nesting in backyard
Not rated yet
We hang our ladder on the fence behind our shed, when my husband went to get the ladder, a Robin had made a nest on the ladder with 3 eggs inside.
When ...
Red Wing Black Bird and more!
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An impromptu day off work proved to be an exciting start to March for me. On my way to work I spotted a Red Wing Black Bird in a bog that I tend to watch ...
2011 Robins
Not rated yet
This afternoon, sighted near St Thomas, Ontario, March 12th, a small flock of around ten Robins, the first ones I have seen since last fall.
There should ...
It's still Winter
Not rated yet
Roberta, one of our readers in Toronto, sent us this report of her bird sighting - Today, February 7th, 2011, while I was walking my puppy, I saw at least ...
Roger's Robins
Not rated yet
Just before New Year, we had 6 Robins in our front yard, they were eating little blue berries off the tree, I think its a cedar. They are always here in ...
Lost Robin
Not rated yet
On Sunday, January 16, 2011, Jon & I were walking onto the frozen lake near our home just outside of Waubaushene, Otario.
Jon stopped suddenly & said,...
A Question
Not rated yet
Last week, while out for a walk, I saw many, many, many Robins, Blue Jays and a Cardinal.
Don't these birds migrate?
Hi Theresa - Robins have usually ...
First Born
Not rated yet
Dianne, one of our readers from Russell, Ontario, sent us these pictures of the Robins in her yard, she says - This Robin's nest is right beside our garage ...
Robin on the veranda
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Gail, one of our readers from Toronto sent us this report of the Robins nesting in their yard - We have a Robin nesting on our porch, in the space between ...
Robins nest
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One of our readers from Scarborough, Ontario, tells us about the nesting Robins in their yard - We have a nest in our back yard, under our porch, in the ...
First Robins of Spring 2010
Not rated yet
Sandy, one of our readers, sent us this report - My mother lives on Lake St. Clair, just outside Metropolitan Beach in Harrison Township, MI.
She ...
Robins sighted in High Park
Not rated yet
One of our readers sighted the first Robins of the season, Michael says - On February 6th, 2010, there were dozens and dozens of Robins at High Park near ...
The Baby Robin
Not rated yet
Probably the first one I saw would have been about around late Feb or Mid March.
However this month of June is what will stay in my memory the longest ...
I have a robin family in my backyard. They built a nest on a lamp that is installed on a post that supports my roof and ...
Links for the North American Robin
The American Robin - migratory birds in Southern Ontario
The Journey North - this is a great site with lots of information for children about this beautiful bird in Southern Ontario and across North America. Perfect site for children to use
Backyard Wildlife Habitat
This is a day-by-day glimpse inside the nest of a pair of Robins, from the day the eggs were hatched until the babies left the nest - very interesting!
Area Birds Page
Return to the page where you will find information about more of the common birds in Southern Ontario - les oiseaux du Sud de l'Ontario
Flickr - great for Wildlife Pictures
Check this site for lots of Canadian Wildlife pictures, including the Robin, Cardinal, Canada Goose and more
One of my favourite birds in Southern Ontario is the pretty Robin, with it's lovely song, which to me is one of the first signs of Spring.
In addition there are a couple of sites listed at the bottom of this page where you can find great wildlife pictures of the Robin and other species.
FACTS AND FIGURES
