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Don't be surprised if you see a robin outside your window this winter, like at least a dozen residents have reported to the Times-Union in the last few weeks.
Prof. Donald Whitehead, Ph.D., Indiana University department of biology, said in extreme mild winters robins will tend to stay around.
"Robins are short-distance migrants," he said. "However, in extremely mild winters, they will tend to stay."
James Townsend, Tippecanoe Valley Audubon Society president, said, "Most robins migrate south; the large majority do. There's a few that always stick around. There are always exceptions to the rule of migration."
Whitehead said whether robins stay or go depends only on the current winter and not on winters past. This year, winter was extremely mild until after Christmas. As long as they can continue feeding, he said, robins will stick around. If the weather changes, as it did this winter, and the snow piles up, Whitehead said, robins will have to make a choice.
"Some of them may move south. Others may try to stick it out," he said.
The warmer winters in previous years haven't affected the birds, Townsend said. However, he said, some uncommon birds have been seen late into the winter.
"We have seen some birds that are rather odd. We have seen in Roann a Western Hummingbird. It was in late November when all the hummingbirds should have been gone. We don't think it could have survived," he said.
Robins that try to stay around until it gets warm again face possible death, too. Whitehead said the weather could kill them. Bird lovers who want to help the robins may find it difficult to feed them.
"It's really hard to feed robins. In the winter when it gets cold, the ground freezes over and they can't get to the invertebrates they normally would eat," he said. "They may turn to fruits like hawthorns."
Whitehead said people could try to feed the robins raisins and similar fruits, but there was no guarantee it would be effective.
Some people may believe robins are a sign of spring. Whitehead said there is a reason people believe that.
"They're one of the earliest migrants because they don't have to come as far," he said. "The sooner the weather is warm, the sooner they will return."
Townsend said, "They are one of the first birds we see in large numbers. They usually come through here in large numbers going north. We also see them when they migrate south.
"We see large flocks come through here as early as March."
Townsend said there is one way to spot migrating robins.
"It's easy to spot the birds that are in migration because they are in large numbers," he said. "One may see 20 at a time."
Robins aren't the only migratory birds that may hang around during winter.
Townsend said bluebirds as well as snow buntings have been seen in this area.
"You never see (snow buntings) unless there's snow on the ground. They migrate from upper Canada," he said.
"A big success as far as the DNR is concerned is the number of geese that have been raised here. They didn't learn to migrate. It's not uncommon to see a flock of 500 geese on Winona Lake."
Persons interested in joining the TVAS can call Townsend at 219-839-5203. Counties included in the society are Kosciusko, Whitley, Marshall, Fulton, Wabash and parts of Noble and Cass counties.
