Breeding adult male. Photo: Kristine Olson/Audubon Photography Awards
Pheucticus ludovicianus
| Conservation status | Could be vulnerable to loss of habitat, but current numbers apparently stable. |
|---|---|
| Family | Cardinals, Grosbeaks and Buntings |
| Habitat | Deciduous woods, orchards, groves. Breeds mostly in open deciduous woods, sometimes in mixed woods, favoring edges or openings with combination of shrubs and tall trees rather than unbroken forest. In migration, may occur in any wooded or semi-open area. Winters in the tropics, mostly at forest edge or in second-growth woods in lowlands and foothills. |
Forages mostly in shrubs and trees, searching for food among foliage. Sometimes hovers to take insects from foliage or bark, or flies out to catch insects in mid-air.
3-5, typically 4. Pale greenish blue, spotted with reddish brown. Incubation is by both parents, 13-14 days. Young: Both parents feed the nestlings. Young leave nest about 9-12 days after hatching. Male may care for fledglings while female begins a new nest. 1-2 broods per year.
Both parents feed the nestlings. Young leave nest about 9-12 days after hatching. Male may care for fledglings while female begins a new nest. 1-2 broods per year.
Mostly insects, seeds, and berries. About half of annual diet may be insects, including beetles, caterpillars, grasshoppers, true bugs, and others, also spiders and snails. Eats many seeds, including those of trees such as elms, and sometimes eats buds and flowers. May feed heavily on berries and small fruits in late summer and fall. Young are fed mostly insects.
Male sings to defend nesting territory, and may fight actively with intruding males. In courtship, male may partly spread wings and tail, draw head back, and approach female while singing. Nest: Placed in deciduous tree or large shrub (occasionally in conifer), usually 5-20' above ground, sometimes much higher. Nest (built mostly by female) is an open cup, rather loosely made of twigs, weeds, leaves, lined with finer twigs, rootlets, and sometimes animal hair. May be so flimsy that eggs are visible through the nest from below.
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