Field Notes · Catnum 135672 · score 1 — low uncertainty
Nest was on an I shaped girder of a steel railroad bridge spanning a road, 25 feet from the ground and 1.5 feet from the rarely used rails. Compactly made of grass and weed stems and stalks and mud, lined thickly with grass. Large and cavity 2 inches deep. Every year since 1898 a Robin or two has nested on this bridge. It is not unusual for Robin in North Philadelphia Co., to nest on R.R. bridges.
Metadata · Catnum 135672
Date10 May 1907
LocalityFrankford, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Coordinates40.014874, -75.078951 ↗ map
CollectorMiller, Richard F.
Eggs in Set3
Specimen Typee
Incubationslight (transcribed as “all slight”)
Identificationflushed (transcribed as “by flushed female”)
Nest Height7.62 m (25 feet)
Nest SupportI shaped girder of a steel railroad bridge
Nest Materialsgrass, weed stems, stalks, mud
Nest Lininggrass
Nest Settingsteel railroad bridge spanning a road
Nest NotesLocated 1.5 feet from rarely used rails. Large nest with cavity 2 inches deep. Robins have nested on this bridge annually since 1898. Railroad bridge nesting is not unusual for robins in North Philadelphia County.
Further Details1530/3
✦ Anecdote
This record documents a remarkable 30+ year tradition of American Robins nesting on the same railroad bridge annually since 1898, showing exceptional site fidelity across multiple generations.