Both in winter broad-leafed forests and in summer coniferous forests, this woodpecker makes rows of small holes in a tree trunk and then returns often to eat the oozing sap as well as insects attracted to the sap. The cavity nest is placed in a soft-wood tree such as a cottonwood or aspen near water. Fruits are used in late summer and fall as a supplemental food.
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A spectacular species found in the pine and aspen forests of western mountains, this warbler gleans and snatches insects from leaves at low to mid levels in the forest. Its nest is a shallow cup placed low in a bush or on the ground, especially under bank overhangs.
Gleaning insects from leaves high in the canopy of broad-leafed forests, this vireo is best detected by its nearly constant singing. The nest is a deep cup suspended in the fork of a small branch and constructed of grass and spider webbing. It winters in Amazonian South America.
Distinctive in its ability to walk down tree trunks head first, the small Red-breasted Nuthatch is readily identified. It occurs in mature coniferous forest and high altitude aspens where it feeds on insects from the bark and, during the winter, on pine cone seeds. Its nest is in a cavity dug out of a rotting branch or stump.
Closely related to and resembling the Northern Cardinal, the Pyrrhuloxia is best distinguished by its parrot-shaped bill and more subtle color patterns. It is restricted to desert areas with tall bushes and scattered mesquite trees. This species feeds on the ground and low in the vegetation on insects, fruits and seeds. In the winter small family groups join together to form flocks. The grass and twig nest is placed in a low bush or dense patch of vegetation.
Small flocks of this noisy and curious nuthatch roam pine forests, often in the company of woodpeckers, chickadees and warblers. In winter the Pygmy Nuthatch often roosts at night in small groups in the same tree cavity. The nest is a tree cavity lined with plant material, hair and feathers. Food consists of insects, spiders and pine cone seeds.
Wintering in riparian forest and summering in dry open coniferous forest at higher altitudes, this vireo is hard to find as it gleans insects from vegetation at mid to high levels in the canopy. It frequently joins large mixed species foraging flocks of titmice, kinglets and warblers. The nest is cup-like and suspended in the fork of a small branch at mid level in the trees. This species is regularly parasitized by both Brown-headed Cowbirds and Bronzed Cowbirds, sometimes with eggs of both cowbirds in the same vireo nest.
A specialist on Pinyon Pine seeds, the Pinyon Jay rarely wanders far from this habitat during the breeding season. It is almost always found in flocks, sometimes up to a hundred or more individuals. It also nests colonially, and the bulky platform nest is made of twigs and bark and lined with bark and hair. Young are fed insects, bird eggs and nestlings of other bird species. All summer long thousands of Pinyon Pine seeds are cached through out the forest and serve as a primary food source throughout the winter.
Perching conspicuously at the tops of scattered trees, this desert species is easy to find. It occurs in riparian areas at lower altitudes in the winter and early spring where it makes its first nest of the year. Then in the heat of summer Phainopeplas move to moister and often higher altitudes to nest again. They depend heavily on fruits of the parasitic plant mistletoe, but they also hawk flying insects like a flycatcher to feed their young. The small nest is made of twigs, leaves and spider webbing and usually placed high in a mistletoe clump in the crown of a tree.
Dull and easily over looked, this warbler commonly winters in suburban areas with vegetation and flowers and in riparian areas. During the summer it breeds in dense shrubs of alder and willow. The cup-like nest is made of grass and usually placed on the ground or low in a bush or dense vegetation. Its food includes insects, small fruit and nectar from flowers and occasionally hummingbird feeders.