Arrrgh!!!

Fabulous sighting, Buffy!! American robins aren't as fragile as we are led to believe, sometimes. As you pointed out, our part of Kansas is in a warmer climatic zone than is your part of Illinois, so we have robins throughout the winter. Strange that you should mention them just now, though. As a part of the back-yard bird count, Hunky Husband pointed out a flock of robins in our back yard, yesterday. Anyone who wants to email me a guess as to the number of robins we had will get a gold star if they are within 10%.

spring what a lovely thought.

Oh Buffy, as lovely as it is to see these delightful birds, I think you best "shoo" them away. Even if they can huddle against the cold, you're right -- there won't be any of those lazy slow-moving earthworms crawling around for a while yet.

15, Cop Car!

Bod, I can't wait....I smell it in the air.

Roberta, I think maybe these robins were destined for Kansas and got blown off course. It's good of Cop Car to let us know that they're pretty hardy birds....and our temps are improving.

Robins aren't really that unusual in cold climes. The New Hampshire Audubon Society put "robin" on the list for the bird count that was conducted a couple of weeks ago. They only put birds that are commonly seen in the winter on the list. Anything else has to hand written in and documented to a "T" (pictures are preferred).

According to Natureworks some robins do not migrate south for winter and they will eat berries when insects aren't around.

I haven't personally had any robins at our house during winter, but I have seen them at different places I have worked (closer to the city).

OK, you folks wore me down with all of your guesses. Well, Buffy, nice try. Multiply your guess by 5 and add 5. (I failed to tell everyone that there would be a story problem in math, today, didn't I?) At any rate, it's always cheering to see the robins.

WOWWWWWW, Cop car! That's a LOT of robins! I was astonished to see the group sunning in my trees, because we don't normally seem them gather together on our lawn.

Bogie, I'm just amazed that robins fare well so far north! You and your mother are my bird specialists. Can you tell me where the Canada geese and mallards sleep around here at night?

Ducks usually sleep on land (although they can sleep on open water). Oh, and they will often sleep with one eye open (only half their brain is asleep). If they are in a group, those on the inside close both eyes, those on the outside close only the eye that is toward the inside.

Fascinating! Thanks for the info, Bogie. I've often wondered where they huddled. That bit about their brains is amazing.

Our Canada geese seem to prefer sleeping on the water. Bogie is, as always when it comes to critters of any sort, right about the ducks. Depending upon the species, some prefer to nestle down in vegetation for the night while others (wood ducks, for instance) like to sleep in the low-flung branches of trees--especially those that edge the water. Keep a sharp eye on those robins because waxwings sometime mingle with them in the trees. (I think that you've mentioned seeing cedar waxwings, before.)
P.S. Hunky Husband saw 7 deer in the far back yard a few minutes ago.

Looking at the Great Backyard Bird Count stats, New Hampshirites spotted 264 robins last weekend

Illinoiains (Illinoyites?) reported over 2,00 robins.

Bird counts are accepted until March 1, so all the stats probably aren't in yet either.

I'm afraid that the government has killed off our deer. They received permission to kill at least 300 of a 1,000 deer herd a year, a number of years ago, and I think they've pretty well decimated the population. Supposedly it was to keep the remaining herd healthy, but I don't think much of the herd remains. That's government for you.....hidden agendas.

Thanks for the info on where I can find Canada geese at bedtime. *G*

Bogie, thanks for the link to the Backyard Bird count. I've printed out the list for my stepson. I wanted to show him the ratio of Cooper's hawks to sharp-shinned hawks that were reported.

Now, after you've thanked us for the info on the Canada geese's sleeping habits, I must admit that I made a stupid goof. I don't really know whether the geese in our neighborhood sleep on the water or not. They may sneak up on the bank when I'm not looking. After all, I don't keep all-night vigil over them! I do see them on land, during the day, sometimes; but, they are normally on the water when I see them early or late in the day so I jumped to a conclusion. Let me rephrase my answer: who knows where the sleep. Maybe they are like the ducks!

LMAO!!!!!!!!

Cop Car...you have to learn to give it your best shot and take no prisoners!*G*