My husband and I observed what appeared to be thousands of robins on our southern Maryland property and on our neighbors' properties as well. The robins were on nearby paved streets, on the ground and in the grass, on power lines, and in all of the trees -- everywhere we looked, literally everywhere -- like they were gathering. It was autumn and overcast, but it didn't rain. The silence was almost deafening. Reminded us of Alfreda Hitchcock's "The Birds." We got in our car, went to the store, and returned home. They didn't scatter from starting the engine and moving the car, and they were still there 20 to 30 minutes later when we returned. This happened a second time a few years later, only there were not nearly as many birds. We've lived here for more than 20 years, in this area for better than 65 years, and we've never seen anything like this. What could this have been, and just how unusual is this?
My husband and I observed what appeared to be thousands of robins on our southern Maryland property and on our neighbors' properties as well. The robins were on nearby paved streets, on the ground and in the grass, on power lines, and in all of the trees -- everywhere we looked, literally everywhere -- like they were gathering. It was autumn and overcast, but it didn't rain. The silence was almost deafening. Reminded us of Alfreda Hitchcock's "The Birds." We got in our car, went to the store, and returned home. They didn't scatter from starting the engine and moving the car, and they were still there 20 to 30 minutes later when we returned. This happened a second time a few years later, only there were not nearly as many birds. We've lived here for more than 20 years, in this area for better than 65 years, and we've never seen anything like this. What could this have been, and just how unusual is this?