On Tuesday (April 1st), we visited RSPB Leighton Moss. As we reached the point in the path where the Garden Trail meets the Family Trail, a Robin flew over and landed on a twig about a foot away from my head. I (naturally) had a tub of live mealies for just such an occasion and as soon as I popped the lid, he flew across and took a couple of mealies from my hand. He did not eat them though. Instead, he flew away with both of them in his beak. He did this several times and then he was joined by a second Robin, which was the female of the pair. She was very friendly too, but remained on the ground to take mealies, rather than coming to hand. She might well have come to hand to feed during the next few minutes, but I'm pretty sure it was only the male that did so. The female was always quick to dive in whenever the male Robin knocked a mealie off my hand, or when one of them crawled off and fell to the ground. The following photos of me and the friendly Robin were all taken by Hazy. After we had toured the reserve and also the Morecambe Bay site, we returned to Leighton Moss for another snack and then I remained with the Robins while Hazel and Mike revisited the rest of the hides. Jason and his friend James were with us in the morning and James was eagle eyed enough to see where the Robins were going with their mealies. I was therefore able to set up the tripod and direct the camera at the nest while the Robins continued to forage near my feet. There were Marsh Harriers to be photographed from the Grisedale Hide, but I was in my element with the Robins, especially as I was able to film the nestlings as they shuffled around in the nest. I expect they have fledged by now. All in all, a fantastic experience at a wonderful location. I will post my other non-Robin photos on another thread.
Mr & Mrs together
Even with an audience, he still came to my hand for his live mealies
The rest of the photos were taken about 6 hours later when I returned to photograph and film the nest (from a sensible distance). Looks like someone was careless with a faecal sac in the first one!
Faecal sac removal
I imagine these little guys (and girls) will have fledged by now, but they will still need plenty of live mealies.
The above clip and the following one were both filmed without the tripod and are therefore somewhat shorter than the final one. They do show the Robins flitting back and forth to the nest.
This final clip is the longest and was filmed using the tripod. I was able to leave it filming the nest and you can see the nestlings as they shuffle around in the nest. The Robins were foraging near my feet (as I had turned over a couple of mossy logs to enable the Robins to forage for insects and grubs). The female did a fair bit of 'ditting' at a third Robin and the male burst into song occasionally. All in all, a wonderful experience with my favourite birds.
Unicum arbustum haud alit duos erithacos
(One bush does not shelter two Robins)
Zenodotus (3rd Century B.C.)
Wonderful thread MC and a delight to relive those moments with the little chicks popping their heads up with open beaks ready for Momma's return !! You did very well to get those shots and clips, it took a lot of patience and time but you were duly rewarded !
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Regards, Hazel
Thanks Hazy. I'm just glad you were there to photograph him on my hand. It took me back to this time last year, when BR was in and out of my kitchen, taking mealies from his little bowl and then coming to my hand whenever I stepped outside to see him. Magical moments relived thanks to Leighton Moss Robin.
I can understand that LM Robin brought back some special memories of the hand feeding you experienced with BR. It certainly is a lovely reserve with a good range of species, especially the Marsh Harriers nipping back and forth across the reserve near the Grizedale Hide.
Blockbuster vid MC, a great privilege to see Robins nesting in the wild!! Amazing pics of them eating from your hand, the 'Robin Whisperer' at his best!!!
2013 photos & vids here
eff37 on Flickr
Thanks Wendy. I also gave mealies to Jason and his friend James as well as two other visitors who were watching me later on. The Robin flew down to them and took mealies from everyone. I was fortunate in that he remained on my hand for quite some time rather than grabbing and flying off. Everyone who had the good fortune of this little fellow landing on their hand found it to be a wonderful experience. I gave my last three mealies to a chap who was with his wife. Once the Robin had taken the mealies, I asked him "How was that then?" He was just overwhelmed and was so grateful to have had the opportunity of feeding a wild bird from his hand. I had been with the Robins for well over an hour by this point and they were flitting around my feet as I filmed the nest. I just wish I didn't live 280 miles away!
SUPERB FOOTAGE
thanks for sharing....
Wow what a fantastic collection of photos MC. How lucky are you to have the robin in your hand!! My fellow is getting a little braver and will feed a short distance away. Patience I suppose.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Thanks Catlady. I'm sure your Robin will become bolder as his brood start demanding more food. If you can get them and don't mind handling them, I would recommend live mealworms for your Robin and his family (once they hatch). You'll save him time and energy if he has another live food source to add to his existing ones.
You certainly had a fantastic day with those Robins, MC! How wonderful to have the wild Robin sit on your hand and lovely to capture the nest and nestlings. We had a garden Robin taking mealworms from our hands about 25 years ago and have not forgotten the thrill of it! We have had Robins every year since, but there are so many local cats passing through our back garden that we never put food on the ground anymore, and still the cats catch the occasional Robin, sadly! However we do put dried mealworms and mini suet pellets on mesh trays off the ground and on a table and the Robins take those. I saw the male feeding the female only yesterday in our Cherry tree, but I think their nest is not in our garden--probably safer that way!
Kind regards, Ann
It was a truly wonderful day. The location was perfect and it was just a privilege to be a part of their World, if only for an hour or two.