The robin is Britain's national bird, selected by public ballot nearly 40 years ago.

Physical description
Robins are small birds with a body length of 14cm. They have a distinctive red face and breast, and brown wings and back. The red breast is bordered by a thin grey-blue border. Male and females look alike but juveniles have a spotted, scalloped plumage with no red.

Distribution
They range across Europe including the Mediterranean islands, North Africa, east to West Siberia and Iran.

Habitat
Robins prefer woodlands, parks, gardens and farmland with hedges.

Diet
They mainly feed on insects and spiders, but they also eat seeds, fruits and berries.

Behaviour
Although shy birds over much of their range, robins have learnt to make use of gardeners in Britain and watch the owners as they dig up their gardens. They then take advantage of the newly-exposed soil to forage for worms and other invertebrate prey. Robins are notoriously aggressive towards each other. Both males and females are territorial and the red breast is fluffed out in display. They will even attack a bundle of red feathers or their own reflection, mistaking it for another individual.

Reproduction
Females build a cup-shaped nest in a covered location such as an ivy-covered bank, bush or hedge or in a hole in a tree. The female incubates the 4-6 eggs for 13-14 days. The young fledge after two weeks and three broods may be raised in a good year.

Conservation status
Robins are not considered to be globally threatened. There are about 4,200,000 pairs in Britain and the numbers have increased by about 20 per cent over the last 25 years.

Voice
Robins have a rich and warbling song, sometimes described as mournful in winter but cheerful in spring. Other calls include a thin seee and a hard tic-tic-tic.