Overview

• Garden specialists advise replacing fat balls and suet in August with sunflower seeds, berries, fruit and mealworms to avoid spoilage-related illness.
• Use cages or mesh around feeders to let robins in while deterring pigeons and squirrels that steal or contaminate food.
• Begin planning to reintroduce higher-fat foods and mealworms as temperatures drop in autumn to support winter energy needs.
• Robins are resident birds in the UK and benefit from consistent supplementary feeding plus fresh water through the year.
• Habitat steps recommended by experts include low trays for ground-feeding robins, open-fronted nest boxes, and native shrubs such as hawthorn, blackthorn and guelder rose.