Summary: American robins may become nuisances to people by tapping on reflective surfaces, such as windowpanes and mirrors. They may also wake people up very early in the morning because that is their favorite time to sing.
Wisconsin's claims the American robin as its state bird, but this bird can be found all over North America. The American robin is a songbird with a high-pitched, upbeat tune. The robin sings when it is hungry or to warn other robins against predators. It especially enjoys singing early in the morning, and is usually the first bird to do so at dawn. So, while you may be annoyed by a bird waking you, to other birds, it certainly is a Rockin' Robin.
The American robin is quite a large bird measuring between 8 and 11 inches in height, and having a wingspan of 12 to 16 inches. The main physical difference
between a male and female American robin is that the female usually has feathers that are paler in color. Both males and females have white moon-shaped patches surrounding their eyes. They have brown feathers and red or orange feathers on their breast. They have white feathers on their throat and near their tail, as well as a yellow bill.
Female robins guard the nest, while male robins assemble in roosts. There can be hundreds of thousands of robins in a single roost alone. That is one big party! Females join the males when they are done nesting.
American robins typically breed from April through July. The females make nests out of mud, twigs, grass, and feathers. American robins usually lay eggs two or three times each year, with about three to five eggs per brood. A new nest is built for each brood. Only about 40 percent of nests produce healthy young robins.
The eggs of a robin are about an inch in length and are blue. (This is where Crayola got the idea for the crayon called Robin's Egg Blue!) As with many other types of birds, there are albino robins. Partial albino robins can have pure white feathers and normal eye coloration. True albino robins, however, lack pigmentation in their eyes. This causes them to be blind at a very early age.
American robins like to eat fruit, berries, caterpillars, earthworms, beetle grubs, grasshoppers, and even small snakes. Their appetites change depending on the time of day. These robins each have an esophagus that widens in order for them to store food. The males and females both try to gather as much food as possible for their young chicks. They can feed the chicks up to one hundred times per day. And, humans complain when they have to get up once in the middle of the night to feed a new baby.
The average lifespan of an American robin is about six years. One robin was known to live for fourteen years, but this lifespan is extremely rare.
American robins like to fly around gardens, yards, and forest areas. You might see robins flying around your yard, searching for food, and returning home to their nests deep inside your trees or shrubs.
Now that you have some background on the American robin, you may be wondering why such an intricate bird could be a pest to you and your family. Well, the robin could eat any plants that you may be growing. Also, it could cause damage to your windshields, windowpanes, mirrors, and other reflective surfaces by pecking at them. They often build their nests in places you would prefer to remain nest-free.
If you discover a robin's nest on your property, a good suggestion is to leave it alone. If you move it, the mother robin may not return to the nest, not due to human handling, but because she does not associate the nest with the new surroundings.
There is a good chance that not all of the eggs in the nest will develop into young robins. If this is the case, the adult robins will dispose of the bad eggs after the others have hatched. So, if you physically move or touch the nest, the adult robins will not return and some of the eggs will go rotten. I guarantee you do not want that smell lingering in your backyard.
The good news is that the female robin only takes two weeks to incubate the eggs, and the young robins only take an additional two weeks to mature. They will then leave the nest, and the female robin will either build a new one or fly south for the winter. You can dispose of the nest as soon as the robins leave it. However, if you notice that the female robin begins to build a new nest, you should move it or knock it down before she hatches her eggs. Otherwise, you will have to repeat the cycle again.
Unfortunately, you are going to have to become a morning person for about a month because the robins will be singing bright and early to wake you up.
Comments
Jennifer
20 Jun 2009, 11:47
We have a fully-grown robin who has not left the nest he/she was incubated
in this spring. The nest is in a covered area above my front door in front
of a large window, so we've been able to see this nest clearly. The mother
had 2 eggs, but only one baby was born. We watched the baby develop and it
is now a full-sized bird. The baby has been in the nest for almost 8
weeks. I know it can fly b/c it leaves the nest whenever you come close,
but I still see another bird (mom) bringing it food occasionally. The bird
sits in the nest much of the day. Is it possible that this baby bird is
"not quite right"? It's head seems small and it sits with its beak wide
open a lot. It seems like very strange behaviors for a bird.
Lynda Burns
21 Jun 2009, 13:07
Hi I have a robins nest in my vine the mother was there constantly guarding
but all of a sudden she is no longer around and there are eggs in the nest
what could have happened. I did not touch the nest or eggs been observing
from the window. getting worried because the mother hasn't been around.
Also will the nest be used again next year, if the mother bird doesnt come
back what will happen to the eggs??
Marc
22 Jun 2009, 16:21
Wind blew over an unplanted Arbotvitae which held a nest with 4 chicks. I
noticed the nest and chicks on the ground so I placed them back in and
returned the nest. After being dived bombed by ever Robin on the east
coast the mother returned to the nest. My question is will the mother
remain or was she merely looking at what happened.
Tammie
24 Jun 2009, 02:06
We have a robins nest over a light in our backyard. The babies were born
and grew and the last one flew away yesterday. The mom came to the nest
with food and found it empty. She flew away but has since returned and is
sitting on the nest again. Is she having more babies?? We were really
hoping to be able to use our back door again. I was just wondering if she
is staying because she is laying more eggs? Can she lay more eggs this
quickly after having the first set?
Mary McCarthy
24 Jun 2009, 14:08
I have a beautiful robin's nest with two eggs in it nestled snugly in one
of my front porch hanging baskets. This also happened a few years ago but
neighborhood cats killed all the baby robins right before their first
flight. How do I water this hanging basket without disturbing or damaging
the nest or eggs? Is there anything to be done to protect this nest from
cats? Thank you.
Andrea
29 Jun 2009, 21:10
I am way beyond simply being annoyed by robins. For 4 yrs. a robin sings at
4 am outside my window, waking me up and does not stop (until I am good and
mad and have no chance at falling back asleep) for at least 45min. I have
tried every plug/fan/curtain to not "hear" it. Earplugs work for noise but
wrecked my sleep as well. Last June one robin was singing all day non-stop
and I almost went insane. He/she was relentless and LOUD. This summer I
have gone insane and it is wrecking my life with my young children as I am
so sleep deprived it is difficult to have energy and patience for them. I
am extremely fond of wildlife and birds and am not bothered by the other
birds that the robins seem to awaken. I feel so betrayed as I loved them
before but now have daydreams of sling shots/bb guns. Help seems impossible
and I will not drug myself to sleep through.
P.S. can't people read and not ask the same ????'s (my bird just started
again to wish me goodnight :)
Jack
15 Jul 2009, 14:47
We have a robin that has been sitting in an empty nest for over two weeks.
The male, or some other male robin came over and was looking down in the
empty nest. I told my wife he was probably thinking..."she told me she was
pregnant...she lied to me". LOL
Anyway, do robins have false pregnancy syndrome?
Maria
17 Jul 2009, 23:28
Today I found a baby robin fallen from a nest that is very close to my
bedroom window under the gutter. The baby bird was ridden with mites and
later died. I made the mistake of bringing hi in my house for a little bit
in the bathroom to wash the mites off. Ten i disinfected the place with
Clorox. My husband flushed the empty nest by blasting it with water. How
likely is it that we will have a mite infestation. We live in southern
Minnesota. I am quite scared. i did not know you could get an infestation
fr these tiny bugs.
Also, I have a panther chameleon and I am quite worried that he will also
get infested (I am not sure if bird mites attack chameleons though). The
mites were about 3/4 of milimeter and grayish black in color.
Please help!
Michele
20 Jul 2009, 20:21
Back in May a Robin had built her nest in the shed and ontop of hose to a
powerwasher. My father needed the powerwasher and was going to move the
nest. I didnt trust him to do this, so the one night I went out to try to
lift it and I saw the babies had hatched. So I was afraid. But like I said,
not trusting him, the next morning, I put gloves on and picked up the nest
with 2 hands very carefully. He got the hose out and then I placed the nest
down on a plant stand that was just slightly shorter than where the nest
was before. The mother came back without a problem and they flew away less
than 2 weeks later.
Now a few weeks ago a Robin built its nest in a bush by the house. It had a
few babies and they left. The nest was abandoned for a few weeks. I looked
in a few days ago and there was a bird sitting in it. Do you think its the
same bird? Why would they come back so soon?
Ask the Exterminator
21 Jul 2009, 11:50
Could be the same bird, or not. Mother Nature is always throwing curve
balls.
Heather
28 Jul 2009, 14:49
Earlier this summer my husband and I noticed a robins nest above the flood
light on our garage. We should have taken it down then and there but
weren’t sure what to do. In the last few weeks we noticed that yes there
are eggs and yes they hatched and there are three or 4 little babies. The
problem is that the nest is about 3 feet from our the Door we need to use
to go in and out of our Garage. There is no other way to get in and out of
our garage so the entrance is unavoidable. We know that the mother robin
is trying to protect her nest, she fly's away and chirps and flaps her
wings, but mostly she just stairs at us and lets us pass under her. In the
last two days she has gotten more aggressive and she actually dive bombed
me while trying to take a picture. I won't be doing that again. The
babies birds are much bigger probably don't have too many days left in the
nest. We live in Downtown Chicago so our yard is very small. My question
is: Do I need to worry that the mother will get MORE aggressive. We do
have a dog that plays in the back yard as well. I don't really want to
move or take down the nest which was your advise in a previous post.. I'd
rather they just get a move on and get out of the nest. I guess that they
eggs have been hatch for a little over a week.
Susanne
18 Apr 2010, 09:52
My husband found a bird's nest w/ tiny blue speckled eggs in it, I'm
assuming it's a Robin's nest & the bird had built this nest in brush down
at the end of our yard; when my husband was mowing yesterday afternoon, he
moved this brush out of the way & found this nest. Naturally, he did not
want to run this nest over with the lawn mower, so he picked the nest up.
I know that the mom will not return to this nest, but is there anything we
can do for these eggs when & if they hatch?
Stacey
04 May 2010, 22:55
A mother Robin made a nest in our cedar bush on our back yard deck last
week. Yesterday, I noticed she was sitting in her nest looking after her
eggs. Well, over night we had a freak snow storm on May 4th and when I got
home tonight, I noticed the heavy snow had made the bush sink on top of the
nest and when I check to see if the mother was still sitting on her nest,
she was gone but the 4 little blue eggs are sitting in there. I am not
sure when she left the nest but probably sometime in the day and I am
wondering if it is too late for her to come back and sit on the eggs
especially because the snow is still weighing the bush down on the nest.
The nest is fine and there is not one stitch of snow on it, but she
probably got scared and left??? My kids and I are so sad because we were
looking forward to her having the baby robins and we would get experience
all of it since it has never happened. But I don't think it's going to
happen? I will check in the morning and hope she comes back, but it maybe
too late the eggs are now to cold. Thank you for any responses would be
appreciated.
Ask the Exterminator
05 May 2010, 09:55
Until they've laid a full clutch, robins allow all the eggs to stay cool so
the babies don't start to develop. If the storm forced her to leave, the
eggs could have gone bad and the robin gave up the nest to start again
elsewhere. Not to worry. Mother robin knows what needs to be done and she
will have her family this spring. Dispose of that nest carefully to avoid
contact with bird mites.
tina
08 May 2010, 08:39
what do they eat besides worms?
Kelly
24 Jun 2010, 12:15
Your information regarding a robin's nest is incorrect. A robin, as well
as other birds, will return to the nest and care for the babies if a human
has touched the nest or moved it. Birds have a little sense of smell.
People say that it is an old myth that birds will not return to the nest
after a human touches it. You should update your information on the
"American Robin".
Kelly
24 Jun 2010, 12:45
Also, a robin will reuse the same nest to lay her next eggs. Maybe they
act different in Wisconsin, but mine here in Georgia are on our back porch
and we are on our second set of babies! For some reason, she didn't mind
building her nest near us or our 4 dogs who are lying and running on the
porch all day!
Ask the Exterminator
24 Jun 2010, 13:59
Thanks! I've updated the article.
Ilana
30 Jul 2010, 17:43
Today i found baby American Robin in my garden, it was trying to fly but
couldnt. Now i dont know what to feed this bird, we putted him in a cage
with some birdfeed-water and grass to sit on. Then my concern: I found this
little grey insect on his neck, like a mite maybe? there was only one and i
picked it up and killed it, I didnt know it was a mite at the time? is this
a concern?
PLEASE HELP!!
Ask the Exterminator
31 Jul 2010, 15:09
Yes! This is a concern. Take the bird and put it back where you found it.
The flying struggle is all part of the fledging process.