Neotropical Migrant Bird Portraits

Interactive Printable Field Guide

Scarlet Tanager (TAN uh jur) Piranga allwacea Family: Thraupidae (Tanagers)		Description: The male is a bright scarlet, with jet black wings and tail. In late summer, the male molts his feathers to his winter plumage which is more olive-colored but with the same jet black wings. The female coloration is dull olive-yellow to lemon-yellow above with darker olive-colored wings and black eyes. They have a thick beak. The bird is shy and hard to detect. They are treetop dwellers. If you listen carefully to the American String Quartet by Dvorak, you might be able to discern his musical translation of the scarlet tanager.. Nesting: The nest, a hollow cup of twigs, needles, plant fibers, is constructed high in the fork of tree branches way out on the limb. Since this particular tanager is noted for its slow, sluggish behavior, perhaps the inaccessibility of its nest helps them avoid predators. And also since these small birds are light - maybe thanks to their hollow bones (just as we believe dinosaurs had hollow bones), they can safely build a nest far out on a limb. Their eggs are greenish blue with chestnut, purple and lilac spotting. Range: (May - October) They are highly vulnerable to tropical deforestation because of their fairly restricted winter range in rainforests and woodlands. Breeds from southern Manitoba, western Ontario, southern Quebec, and New Brunswick to eastern North Dakota, and northern Georgia. Winters from Panama and Colombia south, east of the Andes, to northwestern Bolivia in South America.
printable field guide compliments of www.neotropicalbirds.org Size: 7 inches Diet: Insects (like caterpillars), fresh fruit such as berries, seeds Habitat: Tall broad leaf woods, especially oaks, hickory and maple trees. Breeding Song: "chip-burrrrr"
© 2003 by Trust for Wildlife. Developed with Knowledge Environments, Inc.