Despite being one of the most boldly patterned birds in the eastern woodlands, Scarlet Tanagers are seldom seen. Males are bright red with black wings, and females are yellow-green with black wings. They only nest in deep, deciduous forest, and spend most of their time high in the canopy of oaks, maples, and birches. The foliage at this height is full of insects and their larvae, the primary food source for Scarlet Tanagers. If you are lucky enough to see one, it is usually while it is moving methodically along a branch, gleaning caterpillars or moths as it goes. They eat a significant number of bees and wasps, apparently undeterred by the stings. You may even see them carry a mouthful of insects back to a well-hidden nest, often in the mid-canopy, with vegetation above and below. The best way to find them, though, is by their distinctive song: the male?s song is a bit like a raspy robin, with several blurry phrases in quick succession. Scarlet Tanagers also give distinctive two-part calls to each other that sound like “chip-churr”.
During fall migration, beginning later this month, tanagers will pass through many areas, including those without enough forest to support nesting. They often spend more time eating fruits during migration, so keep an out for them lower down in shrubs like viburnums and dogwoods. Scarlet Tanagers are true neotropical migrants, returning to the Amazon basin during the northern winter. This species’ habitat is protected by multiple, overlapping conservation initiatives, including bird-friendly maple sugaring, forestry, and coffee-growing. They are yet another species we can see in our backyards that requires habitat conservation throughout its range, from Peru, Maine to Peru.
Backyard Bird of the Month is a feature by Maine Audubon created for the Maine Home Garden News, the newsletter of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard
