They are Canadian robins that have come south for the winter.

ditto re. canadian robins... they should have a darker colored breast than the gang that flew south... i see 'em all winter in and out of the sumac

Canadian robins migrating to Massachusetts to get warm...

Reminds me of my niece who used to flee Minnesota every winter to spend New Years Eve in balmy Massachusetts. I guess it's all relative (pun not intended but I'll keep it).

Thanks,
Claire

lol. Not all robins migrate. Many stay year-round. You'll hear people in Feb. exclaim "I saw the first robin!" But that robin had not left.

Veilchen: I finally bought a field guide to birds, primarily so I could try to identify all (or at least some) of those little brown birds that flood the feeder and the ground under it.

I looked up robins (in the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Birds - Eastern Region) - it says:

"Although considered a harbinger of spring, robins often winter in the northern states, where they frequent cedar bogs and swamps and are not usually noticed by a casual observer, except when they gather in large roosts, often containing thousands of birds."

It would make sense in my area which is cedar country with a pond/abandoned cranberry bog and stream nearby. Lots of wild winterberries near the pond and along the stream. I can visualize the robins moving to the bogs when the worms in the lawn head farther underground for the winter. The birds could chow down on the cedar berries and winterberry fruits.

Or they could come down from Canada too. Whatever. The thought of a roost of thousands of robins is a little scary, though.

Claire

Hmmm... if that first robin in the spring is not really a newcomer, then is the bird announcing the first worm to come to the surface in the springtime?

In that case, should we not be singing "When the red red robin comes bob-bob-bobbing along..."?

Instead, should we be singing "When the little brown wormie comes squirm-squirm-squirming along..."?

Or is cabin fever striking very early this year...

Claire

"Although considered a harbinger of spring, robins often winter in the northern states, where they frequent cedar bogs and swamps and are not usually noticed by a casual observer, except when they gather in large roosts, often containing thousands of birds."

That explains why I occasionally see a robin in the middle of winter despite the fact that most people say that they all migrate.

I also think that quite a few species of birds that normally migrate will start staying around during the winter if there is a consistent supply of food in the area provided (deliberately or not) by people.