Species Name: American Robin (Turdus migratorius)

Length: 10 inches (6259 cm).

Description: A medium sized bird, with a dark back and rufous breast and belly. The back is a dark brownish gray; the head of the male is darker and contrasts with the back when seen in good light. Dark streaking across a white throat sets off the yellow beak. Prominent white eye crescents. The "red-breast" varies from orange-brown to brick red, depending on age, sex, and geographic distribution, and extends down the belly to the legs. White under the tail. Legs yellowish. Eastern birds show white corners to the tail when in flight. Erect posture when seen on ground is shared with many other members of the thrush family. Juvenile birds show basic colors of adults but are heavily spotted.

Range: Breeds throughout most of the United States and Canada and most of Mexico. Withdraws from northern parts of range in winter, but remains in coastal locations all year.

Behavior: A familiar bird seen feeding on suburban lawns in spring and summer, often with turned head to assist in hearing worms. In winter, the American Robin adopts the more secretive behavior of other thrushes and spends time in thickets and other protected wooded areas feeding on berries.

Odd Facts: Widely believed to migrate south for the winter, it is commonly held to indicate the approach of spring upon "return" to northern areas. In reality, many robins remain within their breeding range throughout the cold winter months, but out of sight of most people who don't seek them out in the woods.

The American Robin is unrelated to the European Robin (Erithacus rubecula). They share a common name because the first European settlers in North America applied an Old World label to a New World bird based solely on the "red" breast. This causes considerable confusion to American novices who can't understand why these robins look so different.

The European Blackbird (Turdus merula), is another bird that causes great confusion to American novices who react only to name or color and ignore the obvious structural features that show this bird is closely related to the American Robin.

Related or Similar Species: Related or Similar Species: The thrush family is large, including the American Robin, all the spotted thrushes (Wood, Hermit, Swainson's, Gray-cheeked, Bicknell's, Veery), the Bluebirds (Eastern, Western, and Mountain), Varied Thrush, Townsend's Solitaire, plus the vagrant Rufous-backed Robin, Clay-colored Robin, Aztec Thrush, Fieldfare, Dusky Thrush, and Eye-browed Thrush. Many other members of the thrush family occur in Europe and have not yet strayed to North America.

Identification: Familiarity, wide range, and tolerance of people in suburban settings makes this an easy bird for almost everyone to identify. The biggest chance of confusion occurs in the American southwest, where the very similar Rufous-backed Robin strays across the Mexican border in the winter months. Seen well, the Rufous-backed Robin shows the distinctive reddish color on the wing coverts as well as on the back; the dark parts are much paler; the streaking on the throat extends farther down the breast. But not all Rufous-backed Robins are as well-marked as field guides show and any robin seen near the southern border of Arizona in winter should be inspected closely.

The highly spotted juvenile American Robin can also be mistaken for the rare Aztec Thrush in southern Arizona, but such a rarity deserves a close look that reveals the overall mottled plumage and white patches on the folded wing.

Advice on Finding and Photographing: Finding robins in spring and summer is easy - just look on manicured lawns in suburban settings and in community parks with short grass. In winter, look in tangles in protected wooded areas where there are still berries present.

Getting a good photo of a robin feeding on a manicured lawn is another matter. Working low to the ground can make such images much stronger than shots taken from normal eye level.

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