Purdue News
Purdue News
|
|
February 23, 2004 Pin hopes of spring on blackbirds, not robinsWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Homeowners throughout much of the eastern U.S. may be surprised to see robins, a songbird typically associated with the start of spring, flitting about in the midwinter snow, but a Purdue University wildlife ecologist says the birds are no longer winged harbingers of spring. "With the accumulation of more and more mild winters, robins haven't been migrating from many regions in recent years," said Barny Dunning, a professor of forestry and natural resources. "They're really no longer a good sign of spring." Instead, Dunning suggests the winter weary keep an eye out for the red-winged blackbird. He said when those birds begin to move out of their winter flocks and back to their territories in ditches and fields, then spring is on its way. Robins, which historically migrate from the Midwest to the southern United States, have extended the northernmost reaches of their year-round range, Dunning said. This means that people living in locations from Boston to Indianapolis are likely to see the birds congregating around food sources, including landscaping trees that bear fruit. "As we've landscaped, we've planted lots of fruit-bearing trees like crabapples and honeysuckle, so we're providing more food than would have been present here 100 years ago," Dunning said. "Robins take advantage of that by wintering in places where there is now suitable winter food and where there isn't harsh winter weather." Dunning said homeowners shouldn't be concerned for these "snow" birds. "A lot of these species have always had the tendency to winter as far north as possible," he said. "For the most part, the individuals that try to make it through the winter in northern areas will adjust throughout the season and fly south if food becomes scarce or the weather turns bad." There are some bird species that will pick an area, defend it and try to make it through the winter regardless of the weather, but robins are not among them, Dunning said. "The biggest problem for robins wintering in the Midwest are ice storms," he said. "The birds feed on fruit during the winter, and deep snow limits their access to what's on the ground. An ice storm is going to cover up the fruit on the trees and make inaccessible, too." During ice storms, Dunning suggested that homeowners provide alternative food sources for the songbirds. Seed mixes that contain thistle seed, sunflower seeds and other small oil seeds are most attractive to many songbirds. Robins are likely to be attracted to raisins, fruit pieces and suet. "There are ways you can provide resources for these birds without creating a bigger problem," Dunning said. "For the most part, I think the best assumption you can make is that you're not going to trap the birds into doing what's bad for them. We really don't have that kind of impact. Robins don't stay because we planted a crabapple, they stay because changes in the overall environment and the crabapples that we plant help those that decide to stay here survive." For more information about feeding wildlife and how landscaping can affect the number of animals that frequent your backyard, visit Purdue's "Everything Wildlife" Web site. Writer: Kay Hagen, (765) 494-6682, kjh@purdue.edu Source: Barny Dunning, (765) 494-3565, bdunning@fnr.purdue.edu Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722; Beth Forbes, bforbes@aes.purdue.edu Related Web site:
|
