Usually high in dense conifer trees, this tanager can be hard to see on its breeding grounds. During migration through riparian areas and more open forest, it often moves in large but loose flocks. The nest is located high in a conifer out near the tip of a horizontal branch and made of twigs, moss and hair. Food is mainly insects and a few buds in the summer and fruits in the winter.
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Tiny but common throughout desert areas of the southwest, the Verdin is more often heard than seen. It is bold and constantly moving in search of insects and, in season, flower nectar. It also readily comes to hummingbird feeders and orange halves in suburban areas. The spherical nest is huge for such a small bird and made of thorny twigs, leaves and grass all tied together with spider webbing. These nest are also used in the winter as night time roosts to keep warm in.
Aptly named, the solitaire is usually seen alone sitting high in a coniferous tree looking much like a large flycatcher. During the summer, it is confined to high and steep mountain sides where it nests in steep banks amid trees roots. The nest itself is made of twigs and grass stems, and the young are fed insects and an occasional worm. However, in the winter the solitaire descends to lower elevations and feeds almost exclusively on berries, especially those of juniper trees.
A tree top species in broad-leafed and riparian forests, this tanager only occasionally descends to lower levels of the foliage. It feeds on insects, especially bees and wasps, and on fruit. The nest is cup-shaped, made of grass and moss, and placed high on a horizontal branch. Unlike the other North American tanagers that take on the female\'s colors during the winter, adult male Summer Tanagers stay bright red all year round.
Restricted to thick swampy areas, the Sora is heard much more often than seen. However, it regularly emerges from the aquatic vegetation at dawn and dusk as it walks jerkily along the edge of the water with its tail flicking up in the air. This species is a member of the family of waterbirds called rails, and because they are so thin, they can walk between impossibly narrow places - thus the term \skinny as a rail.\ The Sora has a chicken-like bill it uses to pick up seeds and occasionally catch insects and other small aquatic animals.
This spectacular species is not only beautiful but obvious as it perches in the open on fence posts, telephone wires and tree tops in open grassy areas. The large nest is made of twigs and stems and placed low in a crotch of an isolated tree or shrub. This flycatcher feeds on insects, often captured on the ground or low in the air. In the fall it also eats a few berries. Hawks, crows and ravens entering its feeding area are often attacked aggressively.
This sparrow is a resident of arid grasslands with a mixture of low bushes and mesquites. Its food includes insects, seeds, and grass shoots. The nest is located low in a dense cactus or bush and made of grass and twigs. Breeding season is initiated by unpredictable summer rains. Sometimes it joins small flocks of Black-throated, Chipping and Brewer\s Sparrows in the winter.'
A resident of arid, rocky slopes with scattered shrubs and small trees, this sparrow remains with its mate or solitary all year round. The grass-lined nest is found on the ground and rarely in a low bush. Food is mainly seeds, young grass shoots and in the summer some insects.
This wren occurs on arid hillside with boulders, canyons and cliff faces. Its nest is in a hole or niche among rocks. Food is principally insects and other small invertebrates gleaned from the base of rocks and low vegetation. A single male can sing more than 100 recognizable song variations.
Dependent on pine cones for food, the bizarre crossed bill of this species is used to deftly extract seeds from this otherwise difficult source of food. Because of their dependency on this single source of food, the populations of Red Crossbills are constantly wandering to find local eruptions of cones. Where they were common one year, they may be completely absent the next. They also nest opportunistically from late winter to early spring. The nest is made of twigs and placed on a high horizontal branch away from the trunk. The hatchlings are fed a regurgitated puree of pine cone seeds.