Out to work this morning and there was a whole tree full of Robins, must have been 20 of them eating some sort of berry. A sign of things to come.
Spring is Coming
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Are you sure they were robins?
Robins are a sure sign of spring - but their arrival is usually timed when the frost gives way to soft ground and WORMS. Right around easter for us in NJ.
We had 10 degrees this morning and I've still got a about 1.5 ft of hard snow to melt before I see ground again.
Robins are a sure sign of spring - but their arrival is usually timed when the frost gives way to soft ground and WORMS. Right around easter for us in NJ.
We had 10 degrees this morning and I've still got a about 1.5 ft of hard snow to melt before I see ground again.
They were Robins, the woman i was talking too mentioned them also, she has been watching them for a couple days now.
Backwoods Savage
Minister of Fire
And many years some robins stay all winter. If they have easy food and a little protection it doesn't seem to bother them much. I talked to a fellow just a couple days ago and he said there were a half dozen by his place and they've been there all winter.
cmnash
New Member
I'm not so sure anymore. We've had them for 2-3 years all winter long here in eastern Ct. They love to feed on our holly berries but they don't look too happy about being here.
Flocks of about 4-8 robins are common. Same with bluebirds. year round residents now.
Flocks of about 4-8 robins are common. Same with bluebirds. year round residents now.
Wood Duck
Minister of Fire
basswidow said:
Robins can be found throughout the winter in most of the US. Maybe up in northern Canada they are a sign of spring, but down here in PA and the rest of the Northeast they are here in winter in small numbers. During winter they tend to move to swampy areas, woods, and fruit trees and can be hard to see unless you are searching for them, but they are here. The sign of spring is when they appear on lawns instead of winter habitat, but the two can be very close toether. If you don't believe me, check the results of Christmas Bird Counts - Robins appear on almost every one in the northeast and most of the US.
TreePointer
Minister of Fire
hard aground said:
Same here. We usually don't see robins in the dead of winter, but about 8-10 robins were going nuts on the holly berries around my sun porch last week.
TreePointer
Minister of Fire
hard aground said:
Same here. We usually don't see robins in the dead of winter, but about 8-10 of them were going nuts on the holly berries around my sun porch last week.
LLigetfa
Minister of Fire
PFFT! The Robins would freeze their gonads off around here if they dared venture this far North. Going down to -28°C tonight but supposed to start warming up after that. Should see some melting this weekend. Won't see any Robins though for some time.
Singed Eyebrows
Minister of Fire
Yeah, We were wondering "where's the beef" (along with Clara Peller), now we know, lol, RandyBeetle-Kill said:
Wood Duck
Minister of Fire
Around here Red-winged Blackbirds are a more reliable early sign of spring. Some time in the next month they'll invade the feeders and will be singing in the yard. They nest elsewhere, but stay here long enough to make an impression.
Wood Duck
Minister of Fire
I have berry bushes too, but never see them in my yard during winter. Robins change their habits in the winter. If you know their call you'll often hear them moving through the treetops or passing overhead in the woods, but they don't seem to be easy to find on the ground. I find them every winter on Christmas Bird Counts here in central PA, but generally see them from a distance or identify them only by their calls. In the spring they will be so conspicuous you can't miss them. based on the Robins' behavior it is not spring here yet. The thermometer agrees.
mecreature
Minister of Fire
I have Big groups of Robins come and eat all the crab apples off the trees when the weather gets very cold. Single digits for days. Hundreds of them they can clean the tree clean in a few hours. Then if they hang around for long there is a big big mess. Red bird doo all over the place.. We have about 20 crab apples so they will hang around for days. then off they go.. This is not the norm but it does happen every so often.
firefighterjake
Minister of Fire
Haven't seen any robins yet . . . and I never see them during the winter . . . but my wife said she thought she saw a phoebe the other day . . . very odd . . . perhaps the birds are returning earlier than normal this year.
Used to have a robin or two all Winter long in a big briar bush that was loaded with red berries right outside my kitchen window.
It ( they ) would be there every morning anyway.
Cut the briars down and have never seen another one in the Winter.
Kinda wish I hadn't cut that briar patch down. It wasn't really in the way of anything.
Whether this was a Newfoundland robin that just went this far South in the Winter I'll never know.
It ( they ) would be there every morning anyway.
Cut the briars down and have never seen another one in the Winter.
Kinda wish I hadn't cut that briar patch down. It wasn't really in the way of anything.
Whether this was a Newfoundland robin that just went this far South in the Winter I'll never know.
muncybob
Minister of Fire
We live in the middle of a fairly large Christmas tree farm.....much of the farm has been let go over the years and the trees are both large and dense. Lots of wildlife in those trees and many robins over winter in there. Some people just don't believe us when we tell them this, but seeing is believing! As soon as the ground thaws a bit our yard will be covered in robins looking for food.
Also have geese that stay here on a pond through the winter. But yes, spring is coming! THINK SPRING
Also have geese that stay here on a pond through the winter. But yes, spring is coming! THINK SPRING
Wood Duck said:
And the "Starling gangs" do the same thing here...they come in Spring and leave in Fall by the thousands.
LLigetfa
Minister of Fire
No gangs of Starlings but there's been a solitary Starling hanging around here all Winter.PA. Woodsman said:
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