I really hadn’t missed them, until I saw them.
Robins! Lots and lots of robins!
There they were, behind my yard, then in my yard scratching beneath the wet leaves, looking for juicy grubs and worms. I suppose the last time I saw them was mid-August. Then they were gone. Hey, fellows, where have you been?
The Audubon people say that after the robins finish up nesting duties, they often leave the confines of suburbia for wilder habitats.
Then, when that first autumn chill hits the air, they form flocks in preparation of their annual migration to places like St. Simons Island, Jacksonville and Mobile, looking for greener pastures and more food. When the ground freezes in Virginia, worms can be hard to come by.
It was good to see the red-breasted birds, even if only for a few days. But they’ll be back next spring. Robins are known to return to the same place each year to nest, often to the same tree limb, and I always have two pairs that nest in my yard.