Driven to research

With the advent of another nest full of eggs, I figured I better find out how long Robins actually live and if they always return to the same nest, year after year.

Here is a great link that tell everything you want to know about the life cycle of American Robins.

From the link:

Life Cycle

Q. How long do American robins live?

A. Through February, 2001, the longest-living banded wild robin ever recorded by the Bird Banding Laboratory at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center had survived 13 years and 11 months. In captivity, robins have survived longer than 17 years.

I emailed Tom and told him I was going to see how long they live. He shot me back an email that said, "about three hours." Told you he wouldn't be happy. But he won't chase her away because:

Q. Do robins mate for life?

A. No, robins do not mate for life. Pairs usually remain together during an entire breeding season, which can involve two or three nestings. However, in spring, sometimes a male and female who mated the previous year will both return to the same territory and end up together for another year. This happens most frequently when they were successful raising babies the previous year. (uh, oh)

Two down and one to go. I was going to do a few posts about another artist, but for now, I think the biology lesson shall continue.

Related Tags: American Robin, Robin life cycle, Robin mating cycle