FINAL
Migration Update: May 6, 2008 |
Thanks
for
Reporting Your Sightings! >> |
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Today's Report Includes:
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The Migration: Maps and Highlights | News From NOPs >> | |||||||||
Congratulations, Students! For almost 4 months you have watched the ever-changing Journey North maps. As you view these animated maps, do you see changes you did not notice before? Make a general statement to describe what happened as the season went on. Try to explain the underlying reasons for this pattern. How did the "pace" of spring change from one week to the next? What factors might have influenced this?
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Investigate: All in a Day's Work | ||||||||||
On May 5, 2008, this backyard robin's nest in Minneapolis was suddenly busy. No more sitting quietly on eggs. The first baby hatched, and it was hungry!
For the first four days of a nestling's life, the parent birds regurgitate partly digested food into the yawning orange mouths of the babies. By day 5, the nestlings are receiving earthworms that have been broken into small mouthfuls. As the days go by, parents give the babies whole worms and large insects.
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Journal: Welcome Home, Robins! | ||||||||||
Write the story of your backyard robin family! With the help of the Robin Phenology Checklist, you will know how to fill in these blanks: We know the male has arrived when we hear him ____. The female comes later. She begins nest building __ or ___ days after arriving. The nest usually takes __ to __ days to build. She lays one egg a day for four days. Then she starts to incubate. She spends about ___ minutes of every hour warming the eggs. The young hatch about __ to __ days after the last egg is laid. Both parents feed ____ to the babies. The babies will be the size of their parents in ____ weeks. They will leave the nest, or "fledge," about ___ to __ days after the eggs hatch. When dad is feeding the fledglings, it's a safe guess that mom is ____________________. Write your story in your Robin Migration Journal with a title that's your own. Add more sentences and your own drawings, too.
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Photo Wayne Kryduba Baby robins stay in their nest for about 13 days. Just about every time the nestlings gulp down some food, they poop. Let's see—that's 13 days x 4 babies x 356 insects and worms on average each day. That's a LOT of poop! How on earth do robins keep their nest clean? See The Scoop on Poop: Disposable Diapers for Birds: >> |
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Your Robins: The Rest of the Story | Dig In! FAQs >> | |||||||||
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Year-end Evaluation: Please Share Your Thoughts! >> | ||||||||||
Will you take a few minutes to complete our Year-end Evaluation? Only with your help can we document Journey North's reach, impact and value. The information you provide is critical for planning new initiatives and for improving Journey North. Thank you!
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Links: More Robin Resources to Explore | ||||||||||
We offer a list of things to watch for during summer, along with a reminder to keep kitty indoors for the baby birds' sakes.
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This
is the FINAL American Robin Migration Update for 2008. A big
thanks to all who reported their robins and helped us track the 2008
journey north! |
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