Robins
Contributors to this thread:Massachusetts
From: Jebediah
22-Jun-17
Why don't people eat robins? They're almost as big as a dove. We used to love dove hunting years ago.
From: Jebediah
23-Jun-17
Looked it up and answer is pretty simple: no one hunts them because they're protected--it's illegal. That'll do it.
From: Will
23-Jun-17
Jeb,
I dont know if this is true... I was told this story, by my sister in law who's a PhD biologist for NFW - she said she learned it within a lecture at some professional meeting she attended. So, it's got a good source, but it was hand me down info - so I guess grain of salt it.
She said that when Europeans first got here, they did shoot robins, due to the fleshy breasts. But as recognition of dwindling numbers occurred, a "rumor" started that the red breast signified that Robins were actually poisonous, so people stopped shooting them, this coupled with protections as populations has fallen combined to = no one hunting robins. No idea if that's "true", but it's an interesting story for sure!
From: Jebediah
23-Jun-17
Interesting indeed. Robbins don't seem very scarce to me, but I am no authority. Many of them are huge however, to the point that I wonder if they could be mistaken for deer. This might explain some of Masswildlife's deer density estimates.
From: spike78
23-Jun-17
Shoot Jeb, I don't think I've even seen a Robin from the stand last year!
