Laura Erickson's For the Birds

(Recording of a Robin)

Signs of spring are becoming more and more common, but the first robin of spring is not among them. Of course, there are a few robins around, but they’re more like the last robins of winter. Every year at least a few robins winter in the northland, and even with our severe cold snaps, this season has been no exception. It’s strangely satisfying to spot a robin while you’re skiing or hiking on a frosty winter day.

Birds that winter in the tropics, like Broad-winged Hawks, orioles, and most of our warblers, are virtually never found in the Northland in winter. Their migration season is usually well-defined, and stragglers just don’t survive. But Mourning Doves, robins, most blackbirds, and a few sparrows just go down to the central or southern United States, where there are always at least a few freezes. These birds have to be hardy enough to survive freezing weather, and some individuals usually manage to survive north of their normal winter range.

Migrants of a few species, like geese and robins, start returning as soon as the daily temperature starts averaging in the 30’s, but these early harbingers of spring aren’t crazy– they often head right back down south in the face of a cold front. Later migrants, which use day length as the main cue to head north, aren’t flexible enough to turn around if the weather suddenly turns bad.

Wintering robins have to forgo the pleasures of insects and earthworms as long as the ground is frozen. Nonetheless, they get by quite handily on a diet of berries. They’re especially fond of mountain ash berries, and in some winters they’ve actually been abundant all along the North Shore of Lake Superior when there was a good mountain ash crop. They also eat buckthorn, crab apples, rose hips, and whatever other berries catch their attention.

Although there are robins around up here just about every winter, not many people notice them. That’s partly due to the fact that most people don’t notice 99% of the birds around them, but in this case, it’s also because robins become wary and secretive in the winter. There’s no advantage to running barefoot through the snow when the ground’s too frozen to get at earthworms anyway. Robins usually stick close to their feeding trees in winter, and sit fairly still most of the day to conserve energy. Occasionally they’re attracted to raisins and other fruits or grape jelly at a feeding station, but more often they make it through the entire season eating wild food.

This year “For the Birds” is having a little contest to find out more about these Last Robins of Winter. If you see a robin any time between today and the first day of spring, drop us a line telling where and when you saw it. The prize of an all-new cassette tape of 24 “For the Birds” programs will be given to the listener who sees the most robins during this period, and to three listeners selected at random. Like all birding activities, this contest operates on the honor system. Send your robin sightings to “For the Birds,” KUMD, 130 Humanities Building, University of Minnesota, Duluth, 55811.

Seeing a robin in winter is always a treat. So start watching for yours today.

(Recording of a Robin)

This is Laura Erickson, and this program has been “For the Birds.”

Every year a few robins hunker down in the Northland for the duration. If you spot a robin any time between now and the first day of spring, you have a chance to win an all-new cassette tape of 24 “For the Birds” programs. Send your name and address, along with the date and place where you spot each robin, to “For the Birds,” KUMD, 130 Humanities Building, Duluth, Minnesota 55811. Mail your entries by March 25. A prize will be awarded to three entries selected at random, and to the KUMD listener who reports the most robins between February 19 and March 20. Seeing a robin in winter is always a treat, so start watching for yours today.

First Robin of Spring Contest

Every year a few robins hunker down in the Northland for the duration. If you spot a robin any time between now and the first day of spring, you have a chance to win an all new cassette tape of 24 “For the Birds” programs. Send your name and address, along with the date and place where you spot each robin, to “For the Birds,” KUMD, 130 Humanities Building, Duluth, Minnesota 55811. Mail your entries by March 25. A prize will be awarded to three entries selected at random, and to the WOJB listener who reports the most robins between February 19 and March 20. Seeing a robin in winter is always a treat, so start watching for yours today.

Every year a few robins hunker down in the Northland for the duration. If you spot a robin any time between now and the first day of spring, you have a chance to win an all new cassette tape of 24 “For the Birds” programs. Send your name and address, along with the date and place where you spot each robin, to “For the Birds,” KUMD, 130 Humanities Building, Duluth, Minnesota 55811. Mail your entry by March 25. A prize will be awarded to three entries selected at random, and to the KAXE listener who reports the most robins between February 19 and March 20. Seeing a robin in winter is always a treat, so start watching for yours today.