Species of the month: January

Species: Robin

Against the backdrop of the snow, a robin in your garden makes the picture of a British winter, but some of these birds may have come a long way to visit us.

Robins nest in our parks and gardens, but in the winter the population is boosted by individuals that fly from Northern Europe to escape an even colder winter. On certain foggy autumn days, small flocks of migrating robins can be seen arriving on the Kent coast, before they head inland.

The competition for food in winter robin populations is intense and while other species drop defences after the breeding season, the robin is one of the few species to establish winter feeding territories and sing throughout the winter months (as well as spring) defending these areas from other robins.

In most bird species it is the male that sings and this occurs in the spring, but in robins, the female finds her voice in winter and may sing to defend an area from other singing robins, male and female alike!  The song is a melancholy trickle of notes, but the robin also has a "tic-tic" call often sounded in alarm.

The red chest of the robin is a warning signal to other robins, this signal is so strong that the in the breeding season, female robins will arch the front of their bodies away from the male to show him that she no longer poses a threat!

How you can help:

In the winter time, some supplementary feeding can be a life saver for robins, as is providing water.  A variety of food can be put out; biscuit crumbs sunflower hearts are popular, but if you want to give them a real treat, a few wriggling meal worms will always do the trick!  These are available from pet shops, wildlife outlets and angling stores.

By putting up an open fronted nest box at this time of year, it will be suitably weathered and familiar for nesting robins in the spring.

Where to go and what to see in January

Pegwell Bay Country Park

This site in Thanet is managed by Kent County Council and Kent Wildlife Trust.

Golden plover can be seen in flocks of thousand’s here, particularly in late afternoon, when these gold spangled visitors from Northern Europe can be seen gathering to roost.

.