A Gardener's Best Friend

The Robin! It is officially the UK's favourite bird, and for good reason. Robins are a common sight in gardens across the nation, and will befriend gardeners in hope of finding a tasty morsel. Any upturned soil or exposed mud-heaps offer the perfect opportunity for a quick snack to any nearby robin.

Family - Turdidae

Genus - Erithacus

Species - Erithacus rubecula

Male and female robins are hard to distinguish between as they are inherently similar, the only clues are that a female may be slightly duller in her colouring than the male, and during the breeding season, the female will put on weight and so may be distinguished by her slightly larger size. Robins have a bright red breast, white under-belly and a light brown back, tail and wings. Juvenile robins have no red breast, as this develops with age, and are often a speckled light brown.

Just like blackbirds, robins are residents of the UK year-round. Robins are aggressively territorial; over winter, individual birds hold separate territories, whilst over the summer months a pair will defend a joint territory. The size of the territory is strongly influenced by the quality of the habitat. For example, robins within an area of poor food resources will have a larger territory. A little known fact, is that the robin's red breast is actually used in territorial defence, not courtship.

Robins will begin courtship as early as January if the weather is mild, however the general breeding season begins in March. Robins build a "cup-nest", and it is the female alone that is responsible for nest construction out of dead leaves, hair, fur and moss. Robins often court through a feeding behaviour, in which the male supplies the female with food during nest-building and egg-laying. The female will incubate her eggs for approximately 13 days, and upon hatching, the egg shells are removed from the nest. Both parents will take care of young, and by 14 days of age, the young are ready to fledge. Robins usually have two broods a year, and there is the potential for a third given the correct circumstances.

Being strongly territorial, robins use their song to defend territories, and so can be heard singing throughout much of the year. But, the autumnal songs of robins are different to spring songs. The autumn song will start after the annual moult, and it is much more subtle in tone than the spring song, which is much more powerful in order to attract mates and defend territories.

Robins are not long-lived birds, often only surviving for 3-4 years, with the longest surviving robin living to 11 years old! Robins as a species have a high mortality rate, however this is compensated for by their high level of productivity, reflected by the fact that their population has increased by 45% since 1970. Robins are particularly susceptible to death during cold winters, as these small birds use well over 10% of their body weight in one night to keep warm. Unless able to feed well every single winter's day, prolonged cold can cause high death rates in robin populations. However, regularly putting out food in gardens for these small birds can greatly increase their chances of survival through the winter, and they appreciate offerings of old meat, fat, mealworms, cake, cheese, biscuits and fruits.

Robins are a wonderful garden companion, and regular offerings can help to keep these birds visiting your garden throughout the year. They also say that if a robin regularly visits your garden, then someone you love is watching over you.