American Robin
Learn to identify the American Robin by ear. Master the "cheerily cheer-up" phrase and tell it apart from similar species.
What the American Robin sounds like
A rich string of clear, whistled phrases, often given at dawn or from a high perch. It sounds bright, relaxed, and wonderfully familiar.
How to tell it apart
Lessons featuring the American Robin
Ready to test your ear? Practice identifying the American Robin's sounds in this interactive in-app lesson.
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Where you'll hear it
American Robins live across most of North America. Many are year-round residents, but birds from the far north move south in winter.
Look for robins in yards, parks, forest edges, orchards, and open woods. They like short grass for hunting and nearby trees or shrubs for nesting and roosting.
They are often among the first birds singing at dawn in spring, pouring out rich caroling phrases from treetops and rooftops. In winter, they may seem to disappear from lawns and gather instead in fruit-feeding flocks.
How to recognize it by sight
The American Robin is the classic lawn bird—gray-brown above, warm brick-orange below, with a crisp white eye ring that shows at close range. It runs, pauses, and tilts its head as if listening before tugging a worm from the grass.