pine mixtures at low elevation, up to spruce-fir near treeline. During migration, you may find them in nearly any shrubby or wooded habitats, and even in fairly open country. Their winter habitat in Middle America is generally in pine-oak woodland and forest edge.

 

Diet

Western Tanagers eat mostly insects—especially wasps, ants, termites, stinkbugs, cicadas, beetles, grasshoppers, crane flies, dragonflies, caterpillars, scale insects, and sawflies. They also eat fruit, especially during fall and winter including hawthorn, wild cherries, elderberries, blackberries, mulberries, and serviceberries.

Description

Western Tanagers are stocky songbirds; fairly small yet noticeably larger and heavier-bodied than warblers. They have short, thick-based bills and medium-length tails.

 

Behavior

Western Tanagers forage slowly and methodically along branches and among leaves or needles of trees. They eat primarily insects, supplemented with small fruits in fall and winter. They sometimes catch insects in the air. In spring and summer , males sing their hoarse, American Robin-like song frequently.

 

Habitat

Western Tanagers breed in coniferous forests, though they are not particularly choosy about which conifer species. They breed in juniper -