Family:
The American robin is a large, round-bellied thrush. The male has rust-coloured underparts with dark streaks on the throat, and a grey-brown back. There is a white patch on the lower belly and under the tail which can be conspicuous in flight. The head is dark and it has a yellow bill. Females are generally paler than males with more white on the belly, although it can sometimes be hard to distinguish between the sexes.
The American robin is an industrious bird, often seen running and hopping across lawns or standing erect surveying the environment around them. It is one of the earliest birds to start singing in the spring but is no relation to the European robin with which it shares this trait. It was named after the European robin because of its orange breast.
American robins are omnivores and feed on insects, worms, beetles, caterpillars, and grasshoppers, as well as fruit and berries. The hunt for prey on the ground by sight as well as by hearing and will often gather on lawns in search of food after they have been mowed or when sprinklers are in use.
In winter they will gather in large flocks in berry-bearing trees and have been known to eat fermented berries leading to intoxication.
The American robin is the most abundant bird in North America. It breeds from Alaska and Canada to Florida and Mexico, and migrates for the winter to the south of Canada and the Gulf Coast to central Mexico.
It is found in all sorts of habitats particularly around places where humans live such as farmland and pasture, and gardens and parks in cities and towns. In breeding season it will inhabit areas where there are suitable trees for nesting sites, including coniferous forests and deciduous woodland.
4 Responses
American Robin Spotted in Buckinghamshire 22/02/2023
On the 29/01/23 while walking on rough farm/ heath land on a nature reserve near The Lizard in Cornwall we seen what looked like an American Robbin in the shrub trees feeding. Unfortunately we were unable to get a photo of it before it moved on
We live near Crediton in Devon and have just spotted an American robin(s) in our orchard. Think there may have been accompanying female, same shape/size but couldn’t see showy breast. On a Great British Birdwatch day too – suppose they don’t count!
I’m in Camberley, South East England. I might have just seen a glimpse of an American Robin, through my lilac shrub (so not a clear view), sitting on my fence! This bird was about the size of a thrush – perhaps a little bigger, with a bright terracotta coloured breast, pale hazelnut coloured wings and on top, with a black stripe around its head and a white eye-ring. (It made me think of a cartoon burglar!) I think it’s beak was yellow, but I can’t be sure. I didn’t see any blue on its wing to make me think it was a Eurasian Jay, and the coloring of the breast was definitely a solid terracotta orange, no speckles or streaks that I could make out. It caught my eye flying to the fence as it was much bigger than a robin. Sadly I’d no camera as I’d just gone into the kitchen to make a cuppa. Shame! Internet search brought me here, this was the closest picture I could find to what I’ve just seen. I hope it comes back!