Songbirds and Woodpeckers

Songbirds, also called passerines, make up a majority of the bird species in Lake Roosevelt. These species have a highly developed vocal organ, which can be used to produce elaborate and diverse songs and calls. Songbirds use their vocalizations for attracting mates and establishing territory. They can learn a vast array of complex vocal patterns, and many species continue to learn and remember new songs throughout their life. The calls of songbirds in the trees and meadows are a significant part of the soundscape of Lake Roosevelt.

Woodpeckers are known for their ability to probe for insects in the bark of trees by boring into the wood with their powerful beaks. While some species can be quite vocal, woodpeckers are more often noticed due to their distinctive drumming on trees, which can be used for establishing territory as well as feeding and carving nest cavities in dead wood. The pine forests in the northern part of Lake Roosevelt are prime habitat for several woodpecker species.

 

 

Songbirds

 

American goldfinch

NPS Photo

American Goldfinch

Spinus tristis

• Adult males in spring and summer are bright yellow with black forehead, black wings with white markings, and white patches both above and beneath the tail. Adult females are duller yellow beneath, olive above. Winter birds are brown with black wings and two pale stripes

• Found in weedy fields, open floodplains, and other overgrown areas

• Eats seeds primarily from sunflower, aster, and thistle plants

• Males sing a long and variable series of twitters and warbles that can be several seconds long, with notes and phrases repeated in a seemingly random order

 

American robin

NPS Photo

American Robin

Turdus migratorius

• Gray-brown upperpart with orange underparts and dark heads; a white patch on the lower belly and under the tail can be seen in flight

• Common in woodlands, forests, parks and lawns

• Eats invertebrates such as earthworms, insects, and snails, as well as a variety of fruits and berries

• Sings a string of 10 or so clear whistles assembled from a few often-repeated syllables that rise and fall in pitch delivered at a steady rhythm

 

• American Robin (song)

  
  

  American Robin song recorded at the East Inlet in Rocky Mountain National Park.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Barn swallow

NPS Photo

Barn Swallow

Hirundo rustica

• Blue back, wings, and tail, and rufous to tawny underparts; blue crown and face with the cinnamon-colored forehead and throat

• Feeds on the wing, snagging insects from just above the ground or water to heights of 100 feet or more

• Forages in open grassland habitat and over open water such as lakes, ponds, and coastal waters

• Builds nests in eaves, rafters, and cross beams of barns, sheds, and stables, and the undersides of bridges

 

Black-billed magpie

NPS Photo

Black-billed Magpie

Pica hudsonia

• Black and white overall with blue-green iridescent flashes in the wing and tail; upperparts are mostly black with a white patch in the outer wing and two white stripes on the back

• Lives among meadows, grasslands, and sagebrush plains

• Noisy, with a habit of sitting conspicuously at the tops of trees or fenceposts so they can be easy to hear and see

• In the corvid family, along with crows, ravens, and jays

• Wide-ranging diet including wild fruit, grain, grasshoppers, beetles, maggots, and carrion

 

• Black-billed Magpie (call)

  
  

  Black-billed Magpie call recorded in Moraine Park in Rocky Mountain National Park. A hummingbird can be heard flying by, and a House Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and American Crow can be heard in the background.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Black-capped chickadee

NPS Photo

Black-capped Chickadee

Poecile atricapillus

• Black cap and chin, white cheeks, gray back, gray wings edged with white, and pale underparts grading from buff to white at the stomach

• Found in deciduous and mixed forests, open woods, parks, willow thickets, cottonwood groves, and disturbed areas

• Feeds on seeds, berries, and other plant matter, as well as insects, spiders, suet, and occasionally fat and bits of meat from frozen carcasses

• Makes their ‘chickadee-dee-dee’ call using increasing numbers of ‘dee’ notes when alarmed

 

Cedar Waxwing

NPS Photo

Cedar Waxwing

Bombycilla cedrorum

• Medium-sized, sleek bird with crested head, short, wide beak, and short, square-tipped tail

• Pale brown on the head and chest fading to soft gray on the wings. Wings have red waxy tips that are not always easy to see. Pale yellow belly and gray tail with a bright yellow tip. The face has a narrow black mask neatly outlined in white

• Lives in open woodlands, forest edges, fruiting trees, and grasslands, common in towns and suburbs

• Diet includes a wide variety of berries and small fruits, including juniper, dogwood, and wild cherries. Eats many insects in summer, including beetles, caterpillars, ants

• Social birds, forming large flocks when foraging on trees or bushes

 

Mountain bluebird

NPS Photo

Mountain Bluebird

Sialia currucoides

• Males are sky-blue overall, darker on wings and tail and a paler below, with white under the tail. Females are mostly gray-brown with tinges of pale blue in the wings and tail. Both sexes occasionally show orange-brown on the chest

• Found in open woodlands with a mix of short grasses, shrubs, and trees

• Eats mostly insects such as beetles, grasshoppers, and especially caterpillars, and small fruits and seeds in the winter

• Builds nests in tree cavaties

 

• Mountain Bluebird (song)

  
  

  Mountain Bluebird song recorded at Twin Owls in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that the buzz of a hummingbird flying by, the song of a House Wren and the call of a Green-tailed Towhee can also be heard in the recording.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Song sparrow

NPS Photo

Song Sparrow

Melospiza melodia

• Brown body with thick streaks on a white chest and flanks; head is red-brown and slate gray

• Lives in open woodland habitat

• Diet of insects and other invertebrates in the summer, and seeds and fruits all year round

• Sings a loud song of 2–6 phrases that typically starts with abrupt, well-spaced notes and finishes with a buzz or trill

 

• Song Sparrow (song)

  
  

  Song Sparrow song recorded on the Cub Lake Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that an American Robin and a Lincoln's Sparrow can be heard in the background.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Red-breasted nuthatch

NPS/Charlie Baker

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Sitta canadensis

• Blue-gray with strongly patterned heads; a black cap and stripe through the eye broken up by a white stripe over the eye; underparts are rusty-cinnamon, paler in females

• Lives in coniferous forests of spruce, fir, pine, hemlock, larch, and western red cedar

• Feeds on a variety of insects and conifer seeds

• Often seen on tree trunks and branches, where it moves up, down, and sideways over the bark in quick movements

 

• Red-breasted Nuthatch (call and "song")

  
  

  Red-breasted Nuthatch call and "song" recorded on the Sun Valley Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that a Yellow-rumped Warbler can also be heard in the recording.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Male red crossbill

NPS/Larry Putnam

Red Crossbill

Loxia curvirostra

• Adult males are red overall, with darker wings and tail. Females are mostly yellowish below, brownish or olive brown above

• Found in conifer forests and groves

• Eats seeds of spruce, pine, Douglas-fir, hemlock, or larch

• Distinctive twisted bill that crosses when closed, specialized for opening pine cones

 

• Red Crossbill (call)

  
  

  Red Crossbill call recorded on the Cow Creek Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that a Ruby-crowned Kinglet can also be heard in the recording.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Male ruby-crowned kinglet

NPS/Jacob W. Frank

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Corthylio calendula

• Olive-green birds with a prominent white eye ring and white and black bars on wing; the “ruby crown” of the male is only occasionally visible

• Forages through lower branches of shrubs and trees, constantly flicking its wings

• Preys on spiders and many types of insects, including aphids, wasps, ants, and bark beetles

• Males sing a jumbled song starting with soft, high notes that accelerate into a musical twittering, then abruptly shifts into a loud series of 2- or 3-parted notes

 

• Ruby-crowned Kinglet (song)

  
  

  Ruby-crowned Kinglet song recorded at Mill Creek Basin in Rocky Mountain National Park.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Woodpeckers

 

Downy woodpecker

NPS/Volunteer Rusty Wilson

Downy Woodpecker

Dryobates pubescens

• Black upperparts are checked with white on the wings, the head is boldly striped, and the back has a broad white stripe down the center. Males have a small red patch on the back of the head

• Slightly smaller and shorter bill than hairy woodpeckers

• Lives in open woodlands, particularly deciduous woods and along streams

• Eats mainly insects, including beetle larvae, ants, and caterpillars, as well as berries, acorns, and grains

• Moves horizontally and downwards on trees more readily than other woodpeckers

 

• Downy Woodpecker (call)

  
  

  Downy Woodpecker call recorded in the Mill Creek Basin area of Rocky Mountain National Park.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Hairy woodpecker

Macaulay Library, CLO, Jean Sebaststien Guenette

Hairy Woodpecker

Dryobates villosus

• Black wings are checkered with white; head has two white stripes; males have a flash of red toward the back of the head; large white patch runs down the center of the black back

• Slightly larger than downy woodpecker, with a longer bill

• Both sexes average 7–10 inches in length, 1.5–3.5 oz in weight, with a 13–16 inch wingspan

• Lives in a wide variety of habitats with large trees, including forests, woodlands, river groves, and shade trees

• Diet made up primarily of insects, particularly the larvae of wood-boring beetles and bark beetles, ants, and moth pupae in their cocoons

 

• Hairy Woodpecker (call and rattle call)

  
  

  Hairy Woodpecker call and rattle call recorded on the Cub Lake Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  10/14/2020

 

Pileated woodpecker

NPS Photo

Pileated Woodpecker

Dryocopus pileatus

• Mostly black with white stripes on the face and neck and a flaming-red crest; males have a red stripe on the cheek

• Averages 15–19 in length, 8–12 oz in weight, with a 26–29.5 inch wingspan

• Lives in mature deciduous or mixed deciduous-coniferous woodlands of nearly every type

• Primarily eats various ant species, as well as termites, larvae, insects, nuts, and berries

• Bores into bark of trees to find ants, creating characteristically rectangular holes

 

Red-naped sapsucker

NPS/Larry Putnam

Red-naped Sapsucker

Sphyrapicus nuchalis

• Black and white overall with a red cap, nape, and throat; long white bar on the folded wing; black stripe through the eye is bordered by white stripes; belly is mottled black and white, with a yellow tint. Female Red-naped Sapsuckers have a white patch on the chin while males have entirely red chins

• Drills neat little rows of holes in aspen, birch, and willow trees to feed on the sugary sap that flows out; sap sticks to stiff hairs on their specialized tongue, allowing them to lap it up

• Breeds in deciduous and evergreen forests with a mix of willow, aspen, birch, ponderosa pine, juniper, or Douglas-fir trees

• Nests in cavities they excavate in live or dead trees, typically quaking aspens, but also use western larch, lodegpole pine, Douglas-fir, paper birch, black cottonwood, and ponderosa pine