American Robin

20-28 cm length | 31-41 cm wingspan | 72-94 g weight 

A medium-sized, plump songbird with short wings, a long tail and a slightly downturned bill. The American Robin is grey-brown with a black-grey head, white, streaked throat and a belly that can be bright red, orange or peachy. The bill is yellow and the eyes are black with a broken white ring around them. 

The American Robin is a member of the thrush family and got its name due to its resemblance to the European Robin (which is actually part of the Old World Flycatcher family). 

Omnivore | Woodland | Year-round in Vancouver |Lives up to 14 years 

The American Robin is common and widespread across North America and can be found in lightly wooded habitats, parks, farmland and suburban environments. 

The American Robin’s diet consists of about 60% plant foods and 40% animal matter. They eat earthworms, grubs, caterpillars and grasshoppers, fruits and berries. Robins have been observed becoming intoxicated off of natural fermenting fruit. Vision is the primary sense used for hunting but the Robin will also use auditory (sound), olfactory (scent) and potentially vibrotactile (vibrations within the ground) cues. 

The Robin can be readily identified by its song, a series of whistles described as cheer-up, cheerio! Their alarm call is a piercing peek, and also make a chirr call which may sound like a chuckle.