“When a bird disagrees with a bird book, always believe the bird.” That often-quoted statement of John James Audubon is true when it comes to many avian species, especially when it pertains to the American robin, perhaps the most recognizable species of bird even for people who pay little attention to birds. Today’s blog was inspired by a neighbor who asked why robins have returned already.

I explained that robins are not back already, it’s just that many never left! Robins are the most common false harbingers of spring. With excellent habitat and year-round food sources, many robins never leave Oakland County.

The confusion over robins staying or leaving is partially based on the false assumption that robins just eat earthworms. Robins go where the food is and stay in that location until that food supply is gone then they move a few hundred feet or a few hundred miles to a new food supply. Earthworms are a primary food source during spring and summer when worms are near the surface in moist soil. Robins, however, are what we might call picky eaters — they won’t eat just anything. I have never seen a robin at my bird feeders in winter eating seeds and expect I never will.

Last winter on snowy days, I would often see robins pecking away at seeds of red sumac shrubs. And on relatively warm sunny winter days I would see them on exposed sections of my lawn, cocking their heads from side to side to listen for worm movement. Michigan State University Extension Service writes, “Just like humans, some Robins that spend their summer in Michigan, migrate to warmer states like Florida in the winter.” The extension service goes on to explain that there is no one truth to what robins do as winter approaches, and there are numerous factors impacting robin migration.

Many Canada Geese flew southward almost two months ago to locations where grasses and sedges are plentiful. As always, I take pleasure in hearing their distant distinctive calls and noting their V-shaped flight formations when they pass overhead. However, some geese remain behind. I’ve been noticing a pair of Canada Geese at Independence Oaks County Park that are still grazing on greens near the shoreline. I suspect those geese and others that didn’t fly south will switch their diets to seeds, old berries, and fallen fruits if and when we get measurable snow.

It’s unfortunate that some well-meaning people in suburban areas where geese are common will try to help them by putting out food, such as bread, popcorn and seeds. The geese may consume those items, and they are filling, but they are low in nutritional value. That sort of well-meaning attempt prevents them from seeking out natural foods in snow-free areas that they need to survive. It can also be a dangerous practice to keep them congregating in one area because they can become tempting targets for stealthy predators. The bottom line is that geese and all our native birds do not need supplemental feeding. It’s wisest to just let the geese adapt to available natural foods, and if none are available, they will take flight and look elsewhere. Staying around, however, without undertaking the energy-consuming task of migration, gives them a spring season advantage over migrating geese by finding the best available “real estate” when its nesting time. 

Great Blue Herons are another species that we all “know” must migrate; however once again, when a bird disagrees with the bird book, always believe the bird. Most of the herons in our area migrate, but when open water remains some stay, especially when there is enough open water to give access to their aquatic prey, which is mostly frogs and fish. This photo from last winter is of a great blue heron hunting in a roadside wetland in Brandon Township. The heron would walk a few feet, freeze in place, wait for movement then in a lightning-fast move grab its underwater prey. If we have a sudden hard freeze, these adaptable birds will survive by switching to a diet of meadow mice. However, if deep snow comes in, they will shop around for food elsewhere.

With a wingspan up to six feet, Sandhill Cranes are not only the largest bird in Michigan, but they also hold the title of the oldest living bird species. The Nature Conservancy states that there are fossil records of these beautiful birds dating back at least two million years. I might add they are also perhaps the loudest bird species to grace our county. Their resounding trumpeting sounds prehistoric and can be heard from several miles away when they are in flight. When you travel along rural country roads with adjacent farm fields, you may see some foraging for seeds and continue to see them until heavy snow arrives. Most sandhills have left our area but some will likely be around to welcome in the new year on the wilder side of Oakland County. Where should you look for them? Stony Creek and Kensington Metroparks along with Addison Oaks County Park are all good bets, although there is nothing like hearing a flock of trumpeting sandhills fly overhead.

The bottom line as we wait for “Old Man Winter” to take hold is that robins, sandhill cranes and great blue herons are not harbingers of the season we call spring. Many small songbirds might hold that title, but once I see Ruby-throated hummingbirds, I know that spring is here to stay.

Jonathan Schechter is the nature education writer for Oakland County Government and blogs about nature’s way on the Wilder Side of Oakland County.

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