Wondering where the robins are

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/07/2014 (4127 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s that pesky crow again, pecking at our lawn. Until recently, some robins would have been hopping about near our window, eyes focused on the ground to find a tasty morsel or two for their little ones in the trees nearby.

But last year and this — what’s happened to our robins? So far, the only one I’ve seen was one in Toronto in late April. And what about other birds such as wrens and sparrows —where are they? There have been several birdhouses put up in our trees here, but the occupancy rate has been zero.

In mid-June, I phoned several people to find out whether they still had birds in their yards. The response boiled down to:

“Well, there’s far fewer robins but way more crows.”

One young lady saw a crow actually eat the baby robins in their nest nearby. What a nauseating experience!

As for me, try as I do to like crows, I am haunted by the memory of being bombarded by one a couple of years ago, as was a neighbour. Then there was a news report on TV that a woman in Transcona had been attacked by a crow on her own street.

I often go for an evening walk down a side street. One day, amidst a cacophony of crow chatter, one crow’s cawing suddenly became much louder. Urgent!

As I looked up I saw the beastie lunging straight for my head.

“Shoo — get away from me!” I screamed, as I flailed my arms and scrambled out of there. It’s happened twice.

How does one explain the crows’ bizarre behaviour? Were they nesting there? Why attack innocent walkers who were minding their own business?

It does explain, though, why I dislike seeing the ominous figure of a crow instead of a smile-inducing robin parading on the lawn in front of my window. But where, oh where, are you, my trusty red-breasted friend? I originally thought that the herbicides used to control our dandelions might be directly or indirectly hurting our birds. But if that is the case, why are the crows thriving?

As if to counter my disappointment, several people told me they saw a robin and a grackle (blackbird) on our lawns just days after I’d read them this article.

Good!

But I would feel more blessed if I saw a kingbird or two in our area. Much smaller in size, they don’t like crows, either. These flycatchers search on the wing for insects like mosquitoes, and I have in the past seen them ferociously pursue and drive away any crows flying in their territory. Davids versus Goliaths.

Kingbirds, you’re not called “king” for nothing. We need you in our city right now!  For your reward, we’ll gladly share all the mosquitoes you can handle.

Anne Yanchyshyn is a community correspondent for St. Vital.