English Robin

The European robin (Erithacus rubecula), most commonly known in Anglophone Europe simply as the robin, is a small insectivorous passerine bird,... more

by Michelle Reeve

Title

English Robin

Artist

Michelle Reeve

Medium

Painting - Watercolor - Print

Description

The European robin (Erithacus rubecula), most commonly known in Anglophone Europe simply as the robin, is a small insectivorous passerine bird, specifically a chat, that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family (Turdidae), but is now considered to be an Old World flycatcher. Around 12.5–14.0 cm (5.0–5.5 in) in length, the male and female are similar in colouration, with an orange breast and face lined with grey, brown upperparts and a whitish belly. It is found across Europe, east to Western Siberia and south to North Africa; it is sedentary in most of its range except the far north.

The distinctive orange breast of both sexes contributed to the European robin's original name of redbreast (orange as the name of a colour was unknown in English until the sixteenth century, by which time the fruit of that name had been introduced). In the fifteenth century, when it became popular to give human names to familiar species, the bird came to be known as robin redbreast, which was eventually shortened to robin. Other older English names for the bird include ruddock and robinet. In American literature of the late 19th century, this robin was frequently called the English robin.

Uploaded

November 16th, 2014