1+ - 



was seen at the University cherry orchard a week later, and probably 

 arrived there \\?ith no parental guidance. A nestmate of this bird re- 

 mained near the nest site and was constantly attended by both parents. 

 Eighteen days after fledgling, the nestmate was seen begging on the 

 ground and subsequently following both parents in the air, still beg- 

 ging, as they flev\/ directly toward the cherry orchard, one -third of a 

 mile away. There is apparently no single explanation of how immatures 

 find their way to feeding locations and fruit crops. 



Feeding flocks will apparently remain intact for as long as there 

 is an adequate fruit supply in a given area. In 196M-, one flock of 

 robins, about 75 birds, seemed to remain virtually unchanged from the 

 end of June until the last week of August. The reason for this was that 

 three successive fruit crops, tatarian honeysuckle, cultivated blueber- 

 ries and wild, black cherries, all bordering the same small wood lot, 

 provided a continuous supply of food for eight weeks. Certain condi- 

 tions make some fruit crops more susceptible to heavy depredation by 

 flocks of robins than others. Preferred feeding habitat for robins in- 

 cludes a brushy cover and a suitable loafing site nearby. Loafing areas, 

 where birds spend the warmest parts of the day when they are not actively 

 feeding, seem to be invariably in woods, broadleaf or evergreen, where 

 there is an open floor. This enables the birds to browse in a shaded 

 place for insects and to enjoy good visibility of potential predators. 



Netting operations were carried on at two blueberry plantations at 

 the University this year. One was bordered on two sides by bushes and 

 by a wood lot with a loafing area on another. This plantation was an 

 ideal center of activity for a large flock of robins. The other plan- 

 tation was situated in the middle of the University apple orchard. The 

 nearest cover, some woods, was about 150 yards away. This plantation 

 was visited by robins, but only individual birds, rather than a flock. 

 If this example is typical of robin behavior, a strong relationship be- 

 tween habitat and degree of depredation by robins certainly exists. 



A large percent of the robins' food consists of fruit during the 

 summer months. In this study they were seen to do heavy damage to cul- 

 tivated cherries and blueberries. Also eaten by robins were wild tatar- 

 ian honeysuckle, black raspberries, and black cherries. Peaches and 

 wild and cultivated grapes were not touched by robins. Baltimore ori- 

 oles, however, were observed doing considerable damage to both. 



*************** 



PROLOG ICAL PARAGRAPH 



Williain J. Lord 

 Department of Plant and Soil Sciences 



Problems in growing apricots in Michigan - Stanley Johnston and 

 E. Moulton, Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University, 



