Looking for a sure sign of spring? You might want to head to your nearest wetland.
That’s where you’ll find red-winged blackbirds already singing their hearts out from atop trees and cattails, having just migrated back to Michigan after spending the winter in warmer destinations farther south in the U.S.
Red-winged blackbirds are among the very first birds to return to Michigan each spring, making their distinctive, trilling song a true harbinger of the change in seasons.
But what about robins, you ask?
It’s a common misconception that the American robin, long considered a symbol of spring, only returns to Michigan when the weather warms, experts say. Some do migrate out of state for the winter, but in fact many robins spend all year here. It’s just that their cold-weather behavior — gathering in large groups to forage among trees — makes them less likely to be seen.
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“The thing that people start to notice around this time of year is that robins are pairing up, and they see them in their yards,” said Juliet Berger, president of the Washtenaw Audubon Society and ornithologist for the City of Ann Arbor’s Natural Area Preservation. “During the winter time they’re in larger flocks going from fruit tree to fruit tree, and they’re not in people’s yards as much.”
So while seeing robins in your yard could be a welcome signal that winter is waning, one of your best birdy bets that the seasons are changing is to look and listen for the red-winged blackbird.
The males — boisterous and stark black with bright orangey-red shoulder patches — always arrive a few weeks before the females. By early to mid-March they can be seen and heard across most of the state near marshes, along roadside soggy spots, and sometimes at backyard bird feeders, where they’ll refuel after their migration travels.
If you’re ready for spring, just listen for that unmistakable song and take heart that warmer days are coming.
Hear red-winged blackbird songs and calls, and learn more about the species, at allaboutbirds.org/guide/red-winged_blackbird.
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March 10, 2022 at 01:08AM
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This boisterous bird is a true sign of Michigan spring, and it’s not a robin - MLive.com
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