Bird of the Week: American Robin

Species: American Robin, ​​Turdus migratorius

Family: Turdidae

Sign: Taurus

Favorite hobby: Being the early bird

Dear reader,

The unseasonably beautiful sunny days last week hinted at a soon-to-come spring, and what more fitting bird for the spring than the American robin? Robins are one of the most distinct signs of spring in Portland: in the mornings, you can see them poking around leaves and mulch to find a worm or grub. They are year-round residents in Oregon and most of the U.S. They are present in the Northern U.S. and Canada during their breeding season and in a small portion of the far Southern U.S. and Mexico during their non-breeding season. Robins tend to spend more time in their roosts than on the ground in the winter, which is why they are scarce during colder months. Roosts in the winter can be as large as a quarter of a million birds. They eat mostly berries in the winter, and can even become intoxicated if they eat primarily honeysuckle berries, much like Cedar Waxwings. 

Robins are one of the most recognizable birds to me, and not only for their red breast, dark head, and white eye ring. American robins are a member of the Turdidae family, a small family that contains thrushes and their allies. Bluebirds, the American robin, Veery, and Townsend’s solitaire are the only species of the family not distinguished as thrushes, but their silhouettes are all very similar. The thrush shape is unique and their foraging behaviors are as well. They all have long legs and broad, tapered tails. Except for the bluebirds, all of the Turdidae family are ground foragers that feed mostly on bugs and seeds. American robins’ ground feeding behavior is so consistent that they are often indicators of chemical pollution in an area, and are highly susceptible to pesticide poisoning. When they feed on insects and seeds from the ground, they are a primary consumer of chemicals or pesticides impacting the water and soil. A recent study by Dorothy Zahor and Kenneth Glynn at Eastern Michigan University compared robins on their campus to ones in Flint, Michigan, and found that robins in Flint have significantly higher blood lead levels.

Robins’ song may not be as complicated as some of the other birdsongs commonly heard on campus, but it is certainly recognizable. Their string of around ten clear whistles is often described as sounding cheerily, cheer up, cheer up, cheerily, cheer up. At dawn, their song is more rapid. I look forward to welcoming the lovely robins back to Reed’s lawns!