Page 60 - World of Animals - Issue #28 Magazine

Robins: heroes or villains?
Ro b i n s: h e r o e s o r vi l l a i n s ?

Singing for their life

If there were an X Factor-style contest for songbirds, robins
would have a good chance of winning based on endurance
alone. Unlike a lot of ‘fair-weather crooners’, robins are among
the few species which sing throughout the year. What’s more,
they are some of the earliest risers and the latest to retire –
especially in urban areas with lots of streetlights.
These birds aren’t just chirruping because they like the
sound of their own voices. What we might hear as the white
noise of nature is, in fact, vital to a robin’s survival. Firstly, it’s
a way of enticing a mate to come into their territory, and
secondly, it’s a warning to potential trespassers.
Interestingly, the tone of the robin’s song differs
according to the season. As ornithologist Bill Oddie
explains, “It’s not a strong change but it would be if you
heard both songs against the other, like adjacent tracks
on an album. The winter song is thinner and more
wistful. Then when you get to spring, it gets richer
and louder, and there are more notes to it.
“In autumn, they also have ‘sub-songs’ which
are almost inaudible – just tiny little chattering
notes. Then there’s also a hard, metallic ticking
noise they make. Like most birds, they’ve got
several calls.”

What’s in a name?

The earliest records refer to this bird as
the ‘redbreast’. However, during the 15th
century, a trend arose for christening
animals with human names, resulting
in the emergence of ‘robin redbreast’.
Subsequently this was shortened to
‘robin’, though ‘robinet’ and ‘ruddock’ are
also documented.
From a modern perspective, we’d
probably say the robin’s distinctive chest
plumage is closer to orange than red, but
the word ‘orange’ didn’t enter the English
language until the fruit arrived in Britain
in the 16th century, and by that time the
bird’s association with red had stuck, as
it does to this day.
For centuries, this strong connection
with scarlet has seen the bird
appropriated by various groups. As far
back as the 18th century, British postal
workers donned a red coat or tunic,
hence Victorian postmen gaining the
nickname ‘robins’. Nowadays, several
sports squads have adopted the moniker
owing to their kit colour, including football
teams Bristol City and Cheltenham Town,
and rugby side Hull Kingston Rovers.

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