for a Home
out there, a robin thinks of your backyard as its home. A robin's
territory is where mating and nesting takes place. A male must have a territory before he finds a mate.
Finding the Best
Claiming a territory is a male’s first job in spring. He arrives on the breeding grounds about two weeks before females.
A male with the best territory is often the most attractive to females.
robin may battle other males for a good territory. When he
wins, he stakes his claim. How? He sings his territorial song. Now he is home!
Meeting the Family's Needs
The male works hard to find
the best habitat. He flies over neighborhoods or sits high in trees. He looks and
listens. What do you think a robin wants in his territory? What doesn’t he
Looking for Food
territory will provide a good source of worms. Robins
and their babies eat MANY earthworms during the breeding season. Robins also need caterpillars, flies, sowbugs, snails, spiders, termites, millipedes, true bugs, and centipedes.
Looking for Water
Robins need water to drink and to stay clean. They bathe as often as possible. They'll use any kind of water they can find: ponds, mud puddles, melted snow, bird baths, and lawn sprinklers.
Looking for Shelter
Robin habitat must have trees or other high places where the nest can be hidden from predators and protected from bad weather. In
early spring before leaf-out, the first nest is often built in an evergreen
tree. Later, robins will build in decidious trees.
Will a robin choose your neighborhood? Look to see how it will meet the family's needs during
the nesting season. Survey for water for bathing and drinking, earthworms and insects to eat,
shelter from weather and predators. This spring, try see your neighborhood through the eyes of robin.