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American Robin — Part 2
Adult male--Head black with white eye ring; back slate colour; tail black with white tips at the ends of the outer feathers; throat nearly white, spotted and streaked with very dark slate colour; breast and sides chestnut; belly white.
Adult female--Less decided in colour, the head being dark slate colour. Length--10.00.
Breeding Range--Throughout the Eastern States, from Virginia and Kansas northward.
The nest, which is very bulky and sometimes rough in appearance, is formed of leaves, roots, and grasses (sometimes entirely of grass and mud), plastered together with an inner wall of mud, lined with fine grass. It is placed either on a branch or in a crotch at from four to thirty-five feet from the ground. The eggs are of a beautiful pale greenish blue, giving the name to the colour known as "robin's egg blue." Number of eggs, from 3 to 5. Size--1.15 x .80. See Fig. 10, Plate D.
During the breeding season the robins are probably the best known of our Eastern birds, as they build their nests quite frequently in the vines that grow on our verandas, and in the shrubs around the house. They do not then appear to fear man, and will perform their various domestic duties within a few feet of the onlooker. It is always interesting to watch the parent birds feeding their ever-hungry young; from early morn till nearly dark they keep up an almost incessant search for worms, which form the principal diet of the young. Owing to the size and to its being generally placed in a conspicuous situation, the robin's nest is by no means difficult to find. They usually build near cultivation, probably because they find it easier to obtain their supply of worms. The nest may be found in almost any sort of tree along the roadside, or on the outskirts of a wood. An apple orchard is an almost sure place, especially so if the trees be old.
The young leave the nest when about eleven days old. If taken even before they can fly, they are remarkably wild. In trying to photograph them I have experienced the utmost difficulty, as it is almost impossible to induce them to remain on a branch, or, in fact, in any place one may select. I know of no young birds that are so difficult to tame, except, perhaps, the various other varieties of thrushes. They appear to be delicate and are not easily reared.
The nesting season begins about the middle of April, and continues until well into July.