American robin

by Roland D. Hallee

Just the other day a friend told me she thought robins went south for the winter. That is the common thought.

The American robin, Turdus migratorius, is a migratory songbird. While robins occasionally overwinter in the northern United States and southern Canada, most migrate to Florida and the Gulf Coast to central Mexico. Most will depart south by the beginning of September and begin their northern migration in February and March, which gives the illusion that they don’t migrate during a regular winter, when snow covers the ground during those times.

Despite being depicted in the film Mary Poppins, in London, this species is actually a rare occasion to western Europe.

Robins breed in woodland and more open farmland and urban areas. It becomes less common as a breeder in the southernmost part of the deep south of the United States.

The sexes are similar but the female tends to be duller than the male, with a brown tint to the head, brown upperparts and less bright underparts. However, some birds cannot be safely sexed on plumage alone.

Robins are active mostly during the day. During the winter, they flock in large groups at night to roost in trees in swamps or dense vegetation. The flock breaks up during the day when the birds feed on fruits and berries in smaller groups. However, during the summer, the American robin defends a breeding territory and is less social.

The adult robin, however, must stay alert. It is preyed upon by hawks, cats, and larger snakes. Brown-headed cowbirds lay eggs in robin nests but robins usually reject the cowbird eggs. Juvenile robins and eggs are preyed upon by squirrels, snakes and some birds such as blue jays, common grackles, crows and ravens.

The robin is the state bird of Connecticut, Michigan and Wisconsin. It ranks behind only the red-winged blackbird as the most abundant bird species in North America, just ahead of the European starling.

American robins have an extensive range, estimated at 6.2 million square miles. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the bird as “least concern” when evaluating its position as a threatened species. At one point, the robins were hunted for their meat, but it is now protected throughout its range in the United States by the Migratory Bird Act.

The species was first described in 1766 by Carl Linnaeus in the 12th edition of his Systema Naturae. The term robin has been recorded since 1703.

Despite its wonderful song, the American robin is known to carry West Nile virus. While crows and jays are often the first noticed deaths in an area with West Nile virus, the American robin is suspected to be a key host, and holds a larger responsibility for the transmission of the virus to humans. This is because, while crows and blue jays die quickly from the virus, robins survive the virus longer, thus spreading it to more mosquitoes, which then transmit the virus to humans.

Robins eat primarily (approximately 60 percent) on wild and cultivated fruits and berries, and (approximately 40 percent) on invertebrates, such as earthworms, beetle grubs, caterpillars and grasshoppers. That ability to switch to berries allows them to winter much farther north than most other North American thrushes, of which it is a member of that family.

Legends about robins:

• What does it mean to see a robin? Symbolic characteristics and traits of a robin: The robin in the spirit world is known as the divine bird. The Robin is a symbol of good luck and the fact that spring is impending. To see a robin flying can indicate a symbol of renewal, passion and new beginnings. Alternatively, it could represent patience and wisdom.
• Robins entering a house have always been thought of as a sign of forthcoming death, while robins are long associated with religious buildings which, if nothing else, helps to cement its image as the most churchgoing of our birds.
• Robins in Winter. Robins can withstand very cold temperatures. In most places you can see robins in the wintertime. You’ll see them wandering around and yet it’s not considered migration because basically they’re moving in a nomadic way, following the food.
• Bird Continually Hitting Window. It’s a common myth that a bird pecking at your window on three successive days means a death will occur inside that house. This is a problem that is most common in spring as male birds are establishing and defending territories. The male sees his reflection in the window and thinks it is a rival trying to usurp his territory. He flies at the window to try and make the rival leave.

The answer to the question as to whether they go south for the winter or not, is that it does migrate, but some don’t travel as far as others, and some will stay behind, probably depending on the severity of the winter. Their return in February and March also contributes to the belief that they don’t migrate.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Who was the last non-quarterback to be named Super Bowl MVP?

by Roland D. Hallee

Now, here’s something you don’t hear every day. This press release came across my desk this week, and I just have to share it with my readers. I have to preface this by saying that during my tour of duty in Vietnam in 1968-69, I had the occasion to taste squid jerky from a street vendor. Though it had the texture of beef jerky, I found it to be extremely salty, not unusual for Southeast Asian cuisine.

This is what is going on at the University of Maine:

Squid has become a staple menu item and ingredient in many seafood restaurants, whether it’s fried, baked, grilled or served raw. In North American markets, however, only about half of each squid is used for culinary applications.

To reduce food waste and open new markets, a University of Maine-led team of researchers and students will devise new frozen food products that can be created from squid fins, one of their byproducts. The project is supported by $229,376 from the NOAA Fisheries Saltonstall-Kennedy Competitive Grants Program.

The group, led by UMaine professor of food science Denise Skonberg, will devise and develop several frozen food prototypes at the Dr. Matthew Highlands Food Pilot Plant, in Hitchner Hall, using processed fins from North Atlantic longfin and shortfin squid. Possible goods, which will be designed for preparation at home or in restaurants, may include frozen appetizers, entrees, nuggets and sliders. Researchers will recruit people to sample their prototype food products at the UMaine Sensory Testing Center and evaluate them based on appearance, texture, aroma and flavor.

As part of their initial work, UMaine researchers recently invited local chefs to prepare various dishes with squid fins, some of which they may be able to freeze. Those dishes included meatballs, egg rolls and dumplings, all made from squid fins.

Left, Short-fin squid. Right, Long-fin squid.

Skonberg is working on the project with Rob Dumas, food science innovation coordinator at UMaine and facility manager for its School of Food and Agriculture, and Brianna Hughes, vice president of operations, supply chain and quality for The Town Dock, a wholesale calamari product company in Narragansett, Rhode Island. The team plans to recruit a graduate student and several undergraduate students who will complete laboratory and sensory analyses and assist with processing and prototype ideation and development.

A chef prepares meatballs made from squid fins in the Dr. Matthew Highlands Food Pilot Plant, in Hitchner Hall, at the University of Maine. (contributed photo)

Commercial squid fishing and processing brings in millions of dollars annually to New England and mid-Atlantic states, including Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. In 2022, 40.4 million pounds of longfin squid were harvested, valued at $60.2 million, and 12 million pounds of shortfin squid were landed, valued at $6.4 million, according to NOAA Fisheries.

A chef preparing squid fin.

“I am really pleased that we have been able to build a multidisciplinary team, including food scientists, professional chefs and seafood processors for this research and development effort,” Skonberg says. “Although our overall goal is to help reduce seafood waste in the food industry, training our students in industry-relevant research is another big plus.”

Chefs from the New England region will be recruited to help develop ideas for new products, prepare and taste them in an innovation challenge. Once the final prototypes are developed, the chefs also will be asked to test them by preparing them for various applications, then provide feedback on their quality, ease of handling and preparation, likeliness of use in restaurants and price value.

In addition to devising new food products, researchers will investigate how to effectively process and freeze wings from the two squid species, and determine how short-term frozen storage affects the quality of the frozen products made from them. The team plans to share their results with North Atlantic squid processors, product developers, foodservice professionals, seafood technologists and consumers in a variety of ways to benefit the industry at large.

“It’s exciting to see a project with such potential,” says Hughes. “Reducing food waste while also bolstering profitability is a win for everyone.”

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

What was the highest scoring Super Bowl?