lol!
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Trust me, just because you don’t see them doesn’t mean they’re not there. These maps are drawn by people who dedicate their lives to understanding these birds and based on the most reliable observations. They’re not perfect, because nothing is, but they’re better than anything else out there, and they err on the side of caution.
One important thing to note, though, is that at the northern end of the year round range, they may be absent or in reduced numbers in a cold year.
From Minnesota Breeding Bird Atlas:
Minnesota Seasonal Status: Regular breeding resident and migrant statewide; regularly observed throughout the state during the winter months depending on weather conditions and food availability. The American Robin was a very abundant species during the Minnesota Breeding Bird Atlas (MNBBA) and was the most frequently reported species.
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I live on 95 acres of ground. Been here since 2012. That chunk of ground is surrounded by hundreds of acres of woods, swamp, meadow, cattle yards, and prairie. We feed the birds. We have hawthorns and wild crabs still holding fruit. We have huge windows for bird watching.
There are zero robins here from late December until at least mid February. Usually later. There may be some robins down in MPLS, but there are none here. Fact.
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I believe your observation. Just remember, though, that absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. From a more philosophical point of view, you cannot disprove presence of a species by not observing it, but you can disprove absence by positive ID. And other people have regular, reliable IDs of this species in your neck of the woods. They just might not be hanging out right near you.
Anyone interested in when birds are around should check out eBird. You can get pretty detailed ideas of when different species are sighted throughout the year. It’s pretty neat! For example, you’d be amazed how early hummingbirds show up in the spring. Here’s an excerpt for Cass County, MN:
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I believe robins could be found in southern MN in a mild (not this year or the last 4-5 years) winter. How do you know these skilled observers see robins in central/west central MN in late December-February?
I’d wager I spend more time outside and observing nature/wild critters year round than well over 90% of the people around here. I must just not be looking in the right backyards I guess.
Every year during the spring bird survey a couple from town stops here and talks to me about what I’ve been seeing. If those folks are the “skilled observers” then I can understand the map.
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I saw an eagle late last week. It flew along the creek that runs alongside our property. It makes my heart beat faster when it turns and catches the light. That beautiful white head glows in the sunlight.
I’ve also caught site of our blue heron again. This time while slowly puttering along on the Cushman, the heron took a dive off from the big spruce and down toward the creek.
We also have a hawk which frequents a big limb on a sycamore in the same general area. They are beautiful, but I’ve lost a couple chickens to hawks over time which is hard to let go.
They are a big part of my joy being out in the yard all summer. I have seen them all within this week, so they are close by year round
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