Cocky robin! The bird who favours the shaved head of a tree surgeon as a perch



You're more likely to find them perched on the handle of your spade.

But this robin is clearly more familiar with humankind than most.

As well as favouring the shaven head of tree surgeon John Hancock, he also turns up daily on the steering wheel or dashboard of his van to be hand-fed crumbs of bread or oatmeal biscuits.

A head for heights: Tree surgeon John Hancock with the wild robin he has befriended



Mr Hancock, 40, said his feathered friend started dropping in for lunch a fortnight ago, although he has been a familiar sight for longer.

As soon as Mr Hancock and colleagues Tom Murray and Matthew Paddan drive their truck into the yard in Worcester, the robin flies down.



'He has become tamer and tamer and it's a lovely feeling having a wild bird perched on your hand eating titbits from your fingertips,' said Mr Hancock, a father-of-two.

'We used to throw the odd crumb towards him, but none of us expected him to join us in the truck every day. He will take anything out of your hands and seems to enjoy human company.'

Now the robin descends from nearby trees every day and lands on John’s wing mirror ready for the snacks they bring especially for him.





Lunchtime! John breaks up some breadcrumbs as the robin waits on his car window

With his workmates, John feeds the robin for 15 minutes before shooing him away so they can get back to work.



John has put video footage of the robin on YouTube, where it has so far been watched over 5,000 times.

He said: 'We see robins quite often in our line of work, but no tree surgeon ever has them this close.'

Pride of place: The robin has flown down from nearby trees and perched on John's wing mirror every day for the last two weeks

Mr Hancock said since he has started feeding the robin, which he is yet to name, the bird has developed a taste for Chicken Nibblers - snack size pieces of chicken covered in breadcrumbs - which he sometimes includes in his packed lunch.



The three workmates, who are all tree specialists for Worcester City Council, plan to leave fat balls hanging in the yard, on the outskirts of the city, so the robin is well fed over the Christmas break.



Robins have become a traditional symbol of the British winter and are a popular illustration on Christmas cards.



Many continental robins join native birds here for the winter to escape the colder temperatures on the continent.



Good taste: The bird eats titbits from John's fingertips and prefers Chicken Nibblers - small pieces of chicken covered in breadcrumbs

Native robins are noted for their tameness, and are considered the easiest to train to feed from the hand.



Continental robins are often shot for sport or food and, as a result, remain a shy woodland species.



Louise Pedersen, from the RSPB, said the bird's tameness suggested it was almost certainly a native robin.



She added: 'They are known as the gardener's friend and will often come up to people for food once they have built up a relationship with someone.



'Robins are very territorial so it is very likely this is the same bird each time who knows it is safe.

