When the Red Red Robin Comes Bob Bob Bobbin' Along

For the last couple of months or so, I have had a little robin that comes to visit. That is actually an understatement. He virtually has moved into my garden and lies in wait for me every morning. As soon as I come downstairs into my kitchen, he can see me through the patio window and swoops down to sit right outside. At first he had the very fluffy feathers of a youngster, but over the months has been growing into his sleek adult feathers.  I started feeding him a few breadcrumbs, as I had stopped feeding the birds seeds and suet after the invasion of mice I had last year (see here). The little robin seemed addicted to the breadcrumbs and started hanging outside my patio door up to four or five times a day right up until sundown. My window cleaner told me that robins like cheese and, when I googled it, it was indeed true. I suppose the cheese is not unlike suet, good for their bones and it helps fatten them up to cope with the long hard winters. So now my little robin is even more addicted to visiting me several times a day, as he effectively gets a cheese sandwich handed to him (well, not on a plate). 

Here he is saying hello to me.......

.... and then having a bath after his cheese sandwich

Sadly, over the last two weeks, I have noticed another robin swoop into the garden, dive-bomb him and chase him away. Because of this, he is coming less often and always looking over his shoulder, when he does. I am rather inclined to think it is not an amorous encounter, rather it looks more like territorial warfare - like a Battle of Britain fight between a Spitfire and a Messerschmitt. I feel quite protective, as my little robin was there first.  I think I ought to start calling my robin Zelensky and the swooper Putin.