Have you ever seen a flock of robins? If I scan my memories of robins, all I come up with are robins hopping across the grass, digging for worms. They are usually welcomed as one of the first signs of spring. After all, if the robins have come back, spring can’t be very far away. Right?
But last week I saw flocks of them. Yes, flocks.
A couple of weeks ago I decided to start my morning out on the back deck, cold or not. I pulled a fleecy sweater on, and with coffee in hand I headed out to watch the sun come up over the rise. I’ve often found it interesting watching birds at sunrise and sunset. It seems they like to collect in the tops of trees to watch the show.
When I found myself enjoying the back deck in the morning, I decided to venture out one evening. I sat in my chair and watched the sun on the trees. Then, a flock of a hundred or so birds swooped in from the West and landed in the trees at the back of the property. As they flew overhead the sun flashed on their bellies and I could see they had red breasts.
Robins? They didn’t look the right size, and furthermore, what are flocks of robins doing in the mountains of North Carolina in January?
I called Bruce out and he joined me. We watched them dart back and forth across the garden, red bellies flashing. “Maybe robins,” he said.
So I looked up birds of Western NC and asked for birds with red bellies and black/brown backs and heads. Sure enough, I was informed they were indeed robins. And believe it or not, they do fly in flocks during the winter, partly for protection and partly for efficiency finding food sources.
While they eat worms in the spring and summer, they live off berries and seeds in the winter, so more eyes are better. According to my research, they swoop into an area, check out the offerings at the outdoor buffet, and then leave as a group. I was in awe.
The next morning they were back. I tried to interest the cats in watching them, but they were more interested with what was on the ground. I guess they never heard the old children’s poem!
Little Robin Redbreast
