Migratory departures of Robins during spring migration at Skagen, Denmark.

We tracked departures of European Robins Erithacus rubecula stopping over during spring migration at Skagen, Denmark, and facing a sea crossing of more than 50 km. The Robins stopped over on average for 3.8 days (range 1–14 days, n = 15) with departure days being slightly warmer than stopover days (1.5°C warmer, P = 0.003). Departures were concentrated in the evening, on average during astronomical twilight, and toward the northeast (µ = 33.3°, r = 0.499, P = 0.021). The mean northeasterly departure direction is close to the standard migration direction. Most birds probably crossed the sea to Sweden and we observed no obvious reversed departure directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]