Virtual Outdoor Club Hi Team! Welcome to our Virtual Outdoor Club. I’m Melissa, an Outdoor Educator with MSCR. Being outside has always been a source of calm and comfort to me and I’m hoping during these wild mes this video series will inspire you to enjoy the natural world in whatever way you can that day; be it in your yard, on a walk down your street or out your window. We’d love to see you doing it. Please feel free to post pictures in the comments of you and your household doing some of the acvies that we learn. Maybe your pictures will inspire someone else in the community to give it a try too! (Robin’s nest photo 2020 School Forest) Today, we’re talking about the first thing I think of when I hear the word spring. Named the WI state bird by school children in 1926. The cheerful chirp-er, red breasted early bird that always gets the worm. The North American Robin. If you like to be formally introduced to your wildlife, the Robin’s scienfic name is Turdus migratorius. Even though it sounds like poy language, Turdus is the Lan name for Thrush, the name of both the genus and family of the Robin. And migratorius, from migrare which means “to go.” Even though the Robin is a migrang song bird, and even though it is THE sign of spring; Robin migraon is more complicated than just heading south for the winter. There seems to be a lot of individual variaon on far and where they go. Some Robins will even stay North. You may see a large roost of Robins in a fruit tree, eang berries during the winter. Right now, locals and migrang robins are spending their me singing, feeding, building nests and invesgang their territory. Most likely you’ve seen one in an open yard or park, hunng for worms. About half the Robin’s diet consists of insects including earthworms, grubs and caterpillars. Robins hunt for these so body invertebrates by sight but may also use sound, scent and vibraons to hunt up their breakfast. One of the ways you can idenfy a Robin is by the way it hunts. You can observe the Robin take several short hops, then stop and lt its head to the side while it listens to detect its prey moving. One more cool fact about Robins before I let you go. Let’s talk about Robin eggs for minute. Are they really blue? Yes! Eggshell blue may be my new favorite color. The blue-green eggshells are the result of a pigment called biliverdin that is deposited on the eggshell when the egg is being laid. A study by Sciensts David Lah of the City University of New York and Dan Ardia of Franklin and Marshall College found that a light blue nt would allow the eggs to warm without overheang. A darker colored egg may get too hot. A lighter colored egg might allow too much UV radiaon in and not keep the egg warm enough. Robin’s egg blue, is the goldilocks of eggshell colors. Acvity Ideas Look for the Robin on your walk or out your window. Sit comfortably and watch. While your observing ask yourself some quesons: What is the bird doing? What paerns do you noce? Is it singing or making a call? What does it sound like? Are other Robins responding? What makes you curious? Fingerplay Here is a nest for a robin, ( cup both hands) Here is a hive for a bee, ( fists together) Here is a hole for a bunny, ( finger and thumb make a circle) And here is a house for me! (fingerps together over head to make a roof) Build a nest Take a look at the picture. Spend me nocing the shape of the nest and the materials used. Make your own nest. Maybe you have some play eggs to add when you’ve finished. Paper Tube Binoculars Tape or staple two empty toilet paper tubes together, to form binoculars. Use a piece of string taped to the ends for kids to wear the binoculars around their neck. Let kids decorate their binoculars and use them to look for birds. Listen to Robin Calls, See Pictures of Robins and Do Some More Research A good place to start: www.allaboutbirds.org .