Week 5: Advanced Mid Elevation
Scroll down to study the birds by sight and sound, and then take the quiz.
Week 5 Birds
American Dipper, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Hermit Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, Pacific Wren, Red-breasted Nuthatch
Blue-gray gnatcatcher
Bird Code: BGGN
Identify this bird by…
Tiny and slim with long legs and thin, straight bill
Long dark/black tail with white outer tail feathers
White eyering
Non-breeding males and females look alike
Tell males and females apart by…
Males - In breeding plumage, have a black “V” extending above their eyes. Blue/gray on back
Females - Gray on back with a thin white eyering
Look for…
Behavior - energetic and rarely slows down, fluttering after small insects among shrubs and trees with its tail cocked at a jaunty angle
Listen for…
Song: Song is wheezy and harsh. Listen for the buzzy call at the beginning: szeewv!
Call: A whining pwee.
Resources:
American Dipper
Bird Code: AMDI
Identify this bird by…
Stocky, medium-sized bird, very short tail
Gray all over
White eyelids that are obvious when it blinks
Tell it apart by…
Adults - Sooty gray and dark bill
Juveniles - Paler, mottled underparts and pale bill
Look for…
Behavior & Habitat - Found along mountain streams where it readily swims and dives; bobs or dips constantly when standing.
Listen for…
Song: Song is clear, ringing, and musical with repeated notes.
Call: A sharp loud dzeet.
Interesting Note…
America’s only true aquatic songbird! It catches all of its food underwater in swiftly flowing streams by swimming and walking on the stream bottom.
Resources:
Hermit thrush
Bird Code: HETH
Identify this bird by…
Medium sized, full bodied thrush
Brown on back with a distinctly reddish tail
Underparts pale with spots on throat and smudged spots on breast
Males and females look alike
Tell it apart from Swainson’s Thrush…
Sides of head a dull-gray brown color
Thin, white eyering
Tail is redder than its brown back
Look for…
Behavior - They hop and scrape in leaf litter while foraging. They perch low to the ground on fallen logs and shrubs, often wandering into open areas such as forest clearings
Regional differences…
Birds in the Pacific states tend to be smaller, thinner billed, with dusky brown upper bodies and grayish flanks
In the interior mountain West, they are bigger, thin billed, and grayer overall with larger spots and less rufous in the wings.
Listen for…
Song: A serene series of clear, flute-like notes. The similar phrases are repeated at different pitches oh, holy holy, ah, purity purity eeh, sweetly sweetly
Call: A deeper chuck, often doubled and a whiny, upslurred wee
Resources:
Swainson’s thrush
Bird Code: SWTH
Identify this bird by…
Medium sized thrush, round head, short, straight bill
Olive-brown on back and tail
Underparts are white with brownish spotting on throat and breast
Males and females look alike
Tell it apart from Hermit Thrush…
Sides of head are a rich tawny color
Bolder, buffy eyering
Tail does not contrast with the color of their back
Look for…
Behavior - shy but vocal birds that skulk in the shadows of their generally dark forest-interior habitat. They forage for insects and other arthropods on or near the ground
Regional differences…
Russet-backed: Swainson’s Thrushes that breed in the Pacific states are rusty-brown above, with thinner, paler eyerings and medium-brown chest spotting.
Olive-backed: The widespread eastern and northern form is common east of the Cascades/Sierra Nevada.
Listen for…
Song: An ascending spiral of fluting whistles
Call: A sharp quirk; at night a peeping queep
Resources:
Red-breasted nuthatch
Bird Code: RBNU
Identify this bird by…
Compact bird with almost no neck and a very short tail
Sharply marked with a black crown, white eyebrow, and black eyeline
Blue-gray on back and rusty brown on belly
Tell males and females apart by…
Females have paler caps and paler rusty underparts
Males have darker caps with darker rusty underparts
Tell it apart from White-breasted Nuthatch…
White-breasted Nuthatches are larger and they lack the black eyeline and rusty brown belly of Red-breasted Nuthatches
Look for…
Behavior - move quickly over trunks and branches probing for food. They creep up, down, and sideways without regard for which way is up! Flight is short and bouncy
Listen for…
Song: High-pitched, nasal call sounds like a toy tin horn
Resources:
Pacific wren
Bird Code: PAWR
Identify this bird by…
One of the smallest wrens in the United States!
Short, stubby tail, usually held upright
Brown overall with brownish-black barring on wings, tail, and belly
Slight pale mark over eybrown
Males and females look alike
Look for…
Behavior - Quickly hop through the understory as they investigate upturned roots and decaying logs for insects
These energetic birds often bob their heads or entire bodies when they are standing still. In flight they rapidly beat their tiny wings to move short distances between cover
Listen for…
Song: A sweet series of tumbling, trilling notes with a staccato quality.
Call: A single sharp “check” call
Resources:
Feeling ready? Take the quiz!