The invisible singer

Did You Know? You’ll hear the scarlet tanager more often than you’ll see him.

Scarlet tanagers are migratory birds that prefer to breed in mature, deciduous forests with large, old oak trees. Their populations are most dense in the Appalachian mountain range in large contiguous areas of forest between Virginia and Pennsylvania. Despite that, they can be heard in other mature woodlands and do best in areas with large acreage throughout the Midwest and Mideastern-northern part of the United States and just into Canada.

Scarlet tanagers eat some berries, but they are primarily aerial insectivores, meaning they hunt insects from the air. Whereas many people are familiar with aerial insectivores like swallows that hunt in open meadows, scarlet tanagers nest and hunt in the forest canopy. Thus, when prey is abundant, they rarely need to leave the treetops. This makes them difficult to see, and when they are seen, they’re often backlit. Never mind that it’s only the males that are a brilliant scarlet color, the females and juveniles are an olive-yellow color.

Its niche in the upper canopy makes this species’ songs and calls a particularly important method of identification. Songs are a combination of sliding whistles with a throaty rasp. The calls are most distinctive to new birders - an energetic chick-burrrr that carries clearly through the vegetation. Use their calls and songs to try to narrow in on their location, then try to angle yourself to look away from the sun as you search the canopy for a glimpse at these beauties.

Check out audio resources from Audubon and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology for what to listen for on your next walk through the woods!