An American Robin is a fun bird to see while bird watching. Below are some tips to help you identify American Robins. We have also put together a list of fun American Robin t-shirts, American Robin bird patches, birdhouses, bird feeders, binoculars, stickers, and other fun bird-watching items.
About the American Robin
Deep in the thrush in North America, you will find one of the most abundant and broadly spread birds of the area, the American Robin. This sturdy songbird is often described as “America’s favorite songbird”.
Description and Identification
American Robins are ubiquitous and easy to spot in North America. You’ll likely see them on your front lawn or in a park. They hearken the coming spring when they take center stage at the end of winter. Their heads are black, and their wings and tail plumage are grey and light brown. American robin beaks are long and yellow. The males have red-orange chests and black lines on their throats. It can be difficult at times to tell the males from females. Their song is lilting and uplifting, and you’ll find them in both cities and the wild. Listen to their song just before dawn in the spring and summer.
American Robin Color Pattern
They are grayish-brownish birds with warm orange bellies and very dark heads. When comparing the male and female American Robin, you will find that the female’s head is significantly paler than that of their partner’s.
American Robin Size
The American Robin is one of North America’s largest birds. Both sexes are the same in size. Their length is 7.9-11 inches long, they weigh 2.7-3 ounces, and have a wingspan of 12.2-15.8 inches.
American Robin Behavior
This authoritarian bird stands tall and erects with its beak held high and its tails flicking facing downwards. During the winter they typically form and move around in large flocks gathering around trees gobbling down some berries. The male Robin is very protective and uses its voice to protect its territory. He also uses his voice to attract a mate.
American Robin Diet
Their diet consists of a variety of food and fruits including worms, berries, caterpillars, and grubs. During the winter their diet is exclusively made up of berries. Invertebrates and fruit make up most of the American Robin diet. They love pulling earthworms out of the ground in spring and summer, as well as snatching insects and some snails when they can. People have documented their eating of small snakes, shrews, and water insects as well. Fruits, like chokecherries, dogwood, hawthorn, and juniper berries, are some of their favorite foods. Some scientists have said that robins may only choose fruits that have insects in them. Robins forage on the ground and they run and stop on open lawns. They find earthworms by sight, not by hearing them move under the ground, which is a common misconception.
American Robin Habitat
You can find the American Robin in open woodlands, shrublands, yards, gardens, and fields. Robins are everywhere in North America, it seems, from populated areas to rural places with forests and farmlands. They like trees with berries in the winter. During the summer, they will make nests in any place with trees and mud to build the nest. They like coniferous forests in the mountains where it’s less humid in the southwest, and you’ll not often see them in the suburbs, even though they are well-watered locations. They live up to close to the tree line in the mountains, and you can also find them in recently burned forests and tundra. They flock in wooded areas with plenty of berries in the winter.
Range and Migration
You’ll find American Robins throughout North America, from Mexico up to Alaska. They are common in Canada, Alaska, the northern parts of Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New England during the breeding season. You can also usually see them easily in all seasons throughout the continental United States. In the winter, they are common in several parts of the southern areas of the U.S. and Mexico. Robins migrate in flocks, but they split up before nesting seasons. When people in northern regions of the continent see the first robins, it could be that the bird was just a few miles away in the winter and that it didn’t fly from locations south. The winter range varies in the south every year, depending on the availability of food locally.
American Robin Lifecycle
From April all through to July is the American Robin’s mating season. In just one season the female can have two or three broods. She will lay two to five light blue eggs which she will then incubate for close to two weeks. Upon hatching, both the male and female Robin will tend and care for their young ones. After two weeks the young birds will be set and ready to leave the nest for the first time. American Robins in the wild are said to live for two to six years.
Nesting
Male American Robins get to the nesting territory before females, and they defend it by singing and aggressive behavior. The female is the one who chooses a nesting site. One female may have more than one male vying for her attention. The female builds most of the nest herself, and the male provides supplemental assistance. The nest usually sits on a horizontal branch, typically five to 25 feet off the ground, and often not more than 70 feet up. They may also nest on ledges of bridges, barns, or houses. The nest looks like a cup of twigs, debris, grasses, and mud, and American Robins line their nests with plant fibers and thin grasses.
Anatomy of an American Robin
Anatomy is the study of animals or other organisms and their parts. Bird Anatomy is the study of birds and their parts. Birds have beaks, wings, talons, feathers, and other parts that are important to learn about. Learning about bird anatomy will also help kids learn how to identify birds. We focus on the exterior, external, or outside anatomy of birds to help kids learn how to identify them.
Some other types of bird anatomy are the skeletal system, muscular system, circulatory system, respiratory system, and digestive system. Birds also have reproductive systems, nervous systems, and immune systems. Birds are amazing creatures.
FREE PRINTABLE BIRD ANATOMY INFOGRAPHIC
Here is a fun printable design to help kids learn about American Robins.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT THIS FILE Bird Anatomy American Robin
Below is a blank copy to test your kids on the bird anatomy of an American Robin.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT THIS BLANK TEST FILE Bird Anatomy American Robin Test
Ornithology
Bird Watching Academy & Camp Subscription Boxes
At the Bird Watching Academy & Camp we help kids, youth, and adults get excited and involved in bird watching. We have several monthly subscription boxes that you can subscribe to. Our monthly subscription boxes help kids, youth, and adults learn about birds, bird watching, and bird conservation.
- Kids Bird Watching Monthly Subscription$20.00 / month
- Kid & Adult Bird Watching Starter Pack Subscription$20.00 / month and a $72.00 sign-up fee
- Kids Bird Watching Starter Pack Subscription$20.00 / month and a $19.00 sign-up fee
American Robin Bird Girl Video
Bird Watching Binoculars for Identifying American Robins
The most common types of bird watching binoculars for viewing American Robins are 8×21 binoculars and 10×42 binoculars. Bird Watching Academy & Camp sells really nice 8×21 binoculars and 10×42 binoculars. You can view and purchase them here.
- Birding Binoculars$49.99
- Kids Binoculars$13.99
American Robin T-shirts
If you love the American Robin you should purchase a Bird Watching Academy & Camp T-shirt. To help support bird conservation we donate 10 percent to bird conservation activities.
American Robin Iron On Patches
Kids, Youth, and Adults love to collect our Bird Watching Academy & Camp iron-on patches. Our bird-watching patches help you keep track of the birds you have seen and identified. You can also display the patches on our Bird Watching Academy & Camp banners.
The American Robin is a great iron-on patch to start your collection with. The patches are durable and can be sewn on or ironed on to just about anything.
- American Robin Iron on Patches$9.99
- Bird Banner$10.99
American Robin Stickers
Stickers are a great way for you to display your love for bird watching and the American Robin. We sell a monthly subscription sticker pack. The sticker packs have 12 bird stickers. These sticker packs will help your kids learn new birds every month.
Bird Feeders For American Robin
There are many types of bird feeders. Bird feeders are a great addition to your backyard. Bird feeders will increase the chances of attracting birds drastically. Both kids and adults will have a great time watching birds eat at these bird feeders. There are a wide variety of bird feeders on the market and it is important to find the best fit for you and your backyard.
Best Bird Houses for American Robin
There are many types of bird houses. Building a bird house is always fun but can be frustrating. These 4 bird houses have become our favorites. Getting a bird house for kids to watch birds grow is always fun. We spent a little extra money on these bird houses but they have been worth the higher price and look great.