The gardener’s friend

Robins are with us throughout the year but many people only begin to really notice them around Christmas time. The robin’s association with the festive season is believed to have begun when scarlet-jacketed postmen were delivering Christmas cards, and the similarly coloured robin redbreast soon became linked to this tradition.

Their tuneful voices, along with their cheeky attitudes and bright red breast, have endeared robins to the British public. In 1960, they were crowned the UK’s national bird. But don’t be fooled by their cute appearance – they are aggressively territorial and can be quite vicious, quick to drive away intruders.

This is because they hold their territories all year round, warning off intruders with song. Males may hold the same territory throughout their lives. Robins sing nearly all year round and are often the only ones singing through the winter, usually under artificial lights or next to street lights.

Males and females look identical, but young birds have no red breast and are spotted with golden brown, growing their red feathers after their first moult.

These small-but-confident birds are also known for following the gardener around as the soil is being turned over, waiting for tasty earthworms or other small invertebrates to be revealed.

This behaviour began in the ancient forests of Europe where large animals like wild boar were rooting around in the mud and leaf litter and the robin learned to hang around to see what was unearthed.