Robins exploit flood

The Lake level is as high now as I have seen it in recent decades: above the beach and onto local lawns. The spring freshet has consequences for many animals and plants, but until this morning, I would not have guessed that a robin would care about it one way or another.

Normally, a robin seems to hunt over a wide area of grass where it is occasionally rewarded by capturing a worm or grub. Now that the Lake has risen onto the adjacent grass, robins have shifted to foraging within a meter or so of the water’s edge (almost in the manner of a sandpiper). Further, their capture rate has climbed considerably: it is one worm after another in quick succession.

The clue to this behaviour, I suppose, is the water-soaked ground. Worms respond to sodden earth by moving to the surface where robins pick them off with ease.

A robin uses sight (not sound) when patrolling soggy ground. Driftwood is seen along the edge of the high water.

As all the worms are now near the surface, rewards are frequent.

Once the Lake has risen onto the lawn, the adjacent grass becomes the robin’s favourite hunting ground.