Western Tanager: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Bright Little Birds · day 7 of 7

Five facts

1. No other tanager nests as far north. Its breeding forests stretch from the Mexican border all the way up to southern Alaska.
2. It nests almost at sea level in some places and as high as 3,050 m up in the mountains in others.
3. Insects make up most of its meals, about 82 %, with fruit like cherries and raspberries for the rest.
4. It eats insects many birds avoid: in August, wasps and ants made up 75 % of the insects found in western tanagers' stomachs.
5. The female builds a cup nest far out on a branch. In one Alberta study, nests sat on average 80 % of the way from trunk to tip.

The quiz

1. What record does the western tanager hold among tanagers?

• It nests farthest north (correct)
• It is the heaviest
• It lays the most eggs
• It flies the fastest

It breeds as far north as southern Alaska, farther than any other tanager.

2. Up to what height in the mountains can the western tanager nest?

• About 300 m
• About 3,050 m (correct)
• About 800 m
• About 9,000 m

It breeds from about 56 m up to 3,050 m.

3. What makes up most of the western tanager's diet?

• Seeds
• Fish
• Insects (correct)
• Leaves

About 82 % of its diet is insects, the rest is fruit.

4. In August, which insects made up 75 % of those in their stomachs?

• Butterflies and moths
• Dragonflies
• Mosquitoes
• Wasps and ants (correct)

Wasps and ants were 75 % of the insects in their stomachs in August.

5. In the Alberta study, where on the branch were the nests on average?

• Right against the trunk
• Most of the way out toward the tip (correct)
• On the ground below
• Inside a hole in the trunk

On average, nests were 80 % of the way from the trunk to the tip.

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