What Do American Robins Eat?

You may have heard the old adage, “the early bird gets the worm” – a phrase most often associated with the robin. American Robin (birds) always seem to be the first thing in the morning to fly from the perch to the ground, catch worms, and serenade the rest of us as we wake up. You’ve probably seen this from your living room window.

If you’ve ever been lucky enough to see a robin, you probably know that they eat worms. But did you know that worms make up only a small portion of their diet?

American robins actually eat more fruit and berries than anything else. They also eat all kinds of real bugs, caterpillars, beetles, spiders and a few things that might surprise you.

Read on to learn more about robin diets, hunting habits, and how to attract these fascinating birds to your back door!

American Robin eating berries from a tree

What do robins eat in the wild?

In the wild, robins are known to eat earthworms, beetles and caterpillars. However, their diets are far more varied than that. Robins are also often fond of spiders, flies, termites, snails, millipedes, centipedes, and various berries and fruits.

Robins are known to prey on garter snakes up to eight inches in length less frequently, but more surprisingly. They have also been observed picking up marine spines along beaches and grabbing trout fry.

American Robin pulls a bug out of the ground in summer

What do robins eat in winter?

A robin’s winter diet consists mainly of berries and fruit. Fruit is an excellent winter energy source for these birds because of its high calorie content.

Robins are nomadic in winter, wandering in flocks in search of summer berries left over, including blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. Holly berries, apples and strawberries are also favorites of these birds.

What Do Robins Eat In Fall?

As temperatures drop and the long summer days begin to fade in the fall, robins switch from a diet of worms and insects to foraging almost exclusively for fruit and berries.

Bugs, worms, and other insects are much less active on the ground this time of year, making them harder or nearly impossible for robins to find.

American robin foraging for berries

How do robins find food and hunt?

Robins, like most birds, use their keen eyesight to hunt. From flight or perch, they can see worms on the ground or near tunnel surfaces. However, vision isn’t the only sense that makes a robin an excellent hunter. They also have a keen sense of hearing, which can be used to pick out earthworms digging in the ground or to find other bugs that roam around.

What does Baby Robin eat?

Baby robins eat mostly earthworms for the first few days after hatching. Parents break the worms into bite-sized bites for the chicks to swallow.

Parents slowly increase in size and number until babies eat whole worms and insects on their own. After about thirteen days, fledgling robins are ready to leave the nest.

American robin feeds chicks with mouthful of earthworms

What can you feed wild robins?

If you want to feed wild robins, offer them mealworms, berries, and chopped apples. Robins don’t eat bird food, so it’s unlikely they’ll be interested in your feeder. They also like to forage in open areas on the ground. You can sprinkle mealworms, berries, or chopped fruit around the bottom of the bird feeder.

Robins will also eat a variety of other fresh or frozen berries, including blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. Anytime you have extra fruit, you can take it out and give it to the robins.

What does Robbins drink?

Robins drink water, and they like to drink and bathe frequently. That said, another great way to attract robins to your yard is to provide birdbaths. They will use store-bought baths with sprayers and fountains, but robins are also attracted to small ponds where they can bathe as well as collect mud for nesting.

American robin drinking fresh water from bird bath

What eats Robbins?

Robins have many natural enemies, including birds of prey such as hawks, owls, and shrikes. Bobcats and foxes also hunt these birds.

Robin babies are also vulnerable. Crows and bluebirds often eat eggs and even babies after they hatch. House cats also pose a threat as they climb trees and shrubs to reach their nests.

How do I attract robins to my yard?

To attract robins to your yard, it is important to provide a source of food they prefer as well as a source of water for drinking and bathing. Robins aren’t attracted to bird food, so you’ll want to offer plenty of fruit and berries. You can also offer fresh or dried mealworms.

To create a more natural space for robins in your area, you can plant berry bushes and shrubs, grape vines, holly and other native fruit trees. Making sure you have nutrient-rich soil can also increase the number of earthworms in your yard, which in turn attracts more robins.

American Robin enjoys an orange at a backyard feeder

What kind of feeder do robins like?

Robins will use open trays, platforms, or dish feeders. They’re natural ground foragers, though, so eventually they may prefer to scatter their food in open spaces around your yard.

While robins are not attracted to bird food, they are occasionally attracted to pieces of suet or meat, as well as shelled sunflower seeds, jelly and mealworms.

American Robin Diet FAQs

Do robins eat bird food?

Robins don’t eat bird food. They prefer to forage on worms, insects, fruits and berries.

Do robins eat sunflower seeds?

Robins occasionally taste shelled sunflower seeds. However, if you want to attract them to your yard or bird feeder, it’s best to offer fruit, berries, or mealworms.

Do robins eat berries?

Robins eat a variety of berries, including wild berries and berries provided by humans. Some berries on the robin menu include blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, and holly berries.

American robin perched

Do robins eat fruit?

Robins do eat fruit. It’s an important part of their winter diet because it’s high in calories and nutrient-dense.

Do robins eat grapes?

Robins eat grapes. They are usually picked straight off the vine. You can also offer grapes to robins at the bird feeder.

Do robins eat apples?

Robins eat apples. This is a fruit they are familiar with and eat in the wild. You can also leave apple chunks for robins to attract them to your feeder.

Do robins eat dried mealworms?

Robins will occasionally eat dried mealworms when offered. These are best eaten with fresh fruit and shelled sunflower seeds.

American Robin eating berries from a snow-covered tree in winter

Do robins eat holly berries?

Robins eat holly berries when they have time. Berries such as these make up a large portion of a robin’s diet.

Do robins eat strawberries?

Yes, robins eat strawberries. Strawberries are another favorite berry for this bird. They often forage in the wild.

Can robins eat bananas?

Robins don’t eat bananas. Bananas are not a fruit they would naturally encounter, so robins are unlikely to be attracted to them.

Why are robins all over my lawn?

In winter, robins are more likely to travel in flocks for safety. If you notice a large number of robins on your lawn, you may have a good food source for your entire flock.

Expert Q&A

question

Do robins only eat earthworms to feed their young, or do they eat earthworms all the time?

The BirdFact team

In addition to feeding earthworms to their young, robins will always eat earthworms themselves. Generally, worms are a substantial part of the American robin’s diet, and they can catch up to 20 an hour.

These professional worm catchers can gobble up worms up to 14 feet in a day!

ask a question

Do you have a question on this topic that we haven’t answered yet? Submit below and one of our experts will reply as soon as possible.

Include your email address to receive a message when this question is answered.

submit