Today is the UK’s National Robin Day, so I’m posting a photo of our European Robin, Erithacus rubecula, perched on a frosty branch against a snowy background.
After a nationwide poll in 2015, the Robin was voted as Britain’s National Bird. Somehow, we hadn’t have one before. In the UK, Robins are popular because they’re easy to recognise, found in a wide variety of habitats, common in gardens and friendly sometimes to the point of cheeky/bold. They’re well known for following gardeners around as they work, knowing that insects and other invertebrates will have been brought to the surface for them to eat.
Even as chicks, they take to perching on cute perches, like the handle of a spade stuck in the ground. I once put an old curling stone out in the garden as an ornament, and very shortly afterwards, a young Robin perched on the handle. They come readily to garden feeders, often waiting for feeders to be replenished, and can be persuaded to come to the hand to take food, especially in cold weather.
Robins are known for fighting with each other, though often it doesn’t come to blows. The main confrontation is when two birds face off, stretching their heads up and back to show off the size of their red breasts. In fact, it’s such a ‘red rag to a Robin’ that females have to bow in front of males to hide their red breasts in a show of submission when they want to mate, and young Robins don’t have red breasts, but are brown with pale spots, to keep them safe from adults.
This image of a Robin in Snow is copyright © Liz Leyden. All rights strictly as agreed in writing with the author or her agent.
It is available for sale as various types of wall art, and as home and personal accessories, from my gallery at Pixels.com.
My original photo, from which the image is derived, is available to purchase as a stock photo from my portfolio at iStock.
