Quantcast

Ovenbird

Seiurus aurocapillusOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Wood Warblers (Parulidae)

Ovenbird Portrait
  Copyright 2002-2007 Whatbird.com
Click here for licensing information Splitbar

General

Ovenbird: Medium-sized, ground walking warbler with olive-brown upperparts and heavily spotted white underparts. Head has a dull orange central crown stripe, bold white eye-ring, and black eyebrows. Wings and tail are olive-green. Legs are pink, stout, and long. Sexes are similar. Juvenile is duller and has olive-brown crown stripe.

Range and Habitat

Ovenbird: Breeds from west-central Canada east to Maritimes, and south to the northern Gulf Coast states and South Carolina. Spends winters from the Gulf Coast and Florida to South America. Preferred habitats include mature, dry forests with little undergrowth.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"TEAcher-TEAcher-TEAcher"

Interesting Facts

 The Ovenbird gets its name from its covered nest. The dome and side entrance make it resemble a Dutch oven.

 Studies estimate that half of all adults die each year with much of the mortality due to the hazards of migration.

 The female performs a crippled-bird display to distract predators when flushed from the nest.

 A group of ovenbirds are collectively known as a "stew" of ovenbirds.



Author

Gary Owen Dick

Splitbar
Range Map for Ovenbird
.
Bird database and its related content, illustrations and media is Copyright © 2002 - 2007  Whatbird.com
All rights reserved. No part of this web site may be reproduced without written permission from Mitch Waite Group.
 Privacy Policy.
Percevia® Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family Wood Warbler (Parulidae)_blue
Species Seiurus aurocapillus
Length6 Inches
Wingspan9 Inches

Ovenbird

Ovenbird: Medium, ground walking warbler, olive-brown upperparts, heavily spotted white underparts. Head has dull orange central crown stripe edged in black, and a white eye-ring. Wings, tail are olive-green. Name is from its covered nest, the dome and side entrance make it resemble a dutch oven.

● Song: "TEAcher-TEAcher-TEAcher"

● Foraging & Feeding: Ovenbird: Feeds on insects, spiders, snails, and worms; also eats seeds and other vegetation during winter; forages while walking on the ground.

● Breeding & nesting: Ovenbird: Three to six white eggs, flecked with gray or brown, are laid in a domed or oven-shaped nest with a side entrance. Nest is made of dead leaves and plant fibers, lined with grass, and built on the ground. Incubation ranges from 11 to 14 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Ovenbird: Louisiana and Northern waterthrushes have a white to yellow stripe behind eyes, and lack eye-rings and black borders on crowns.

Flight Pattern

Swift direct flight of short duration on rapidly beating wings.
Ovenbird Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Ovenbird: Breeds from west-central Canada east to Maritimes, and south to the northern Gulf Coast states and South Carolina. Spends winters from the Gulf Coast and Florida to South America. Preferred habitats include mature, dry forests with little undergrowth.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
PopulationCommon to fairly common
MigrationMigratory
Weight0.7 Ounces