Black-headed Grosbeak

Pheucticus melanocephalusOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Cardinals and Grosbeaks (Cardinalidae)

Breeding Location:

Forest edge

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Common to fairly common

Egg Color:

Light blue or green with red brown spots

Number of Eggs:

3 - 4

Incubation Days:

12 - 14

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Lined with fine material., Sticks, weeds, rootlets, and pine needles.

Migration:

Migratory

Overview

Black-headed Grosbeak: Large, stocky finch, black-streaked, orange-brown back, black head, wings, tail. Breast is orange-brown and belly is yellow. Wings have conspicuous white patches. Black legs, feet.Forages on ground and in trees and bushes. Eats insects, caterpillars, seeds, fruits and berries.

Range and Habitat

Black-headed Grosbeak: Breeds from southwestern Canada east to western North Dakota and Nebraska, and south to the mountains of Mexico. Spends winters in Mexico. Preferred habitats include open, deciduous woodlands near water, such as river bottoms, lakeshores, and swampy places with a mixture of trees and shrubs.

Breeding and Nesting

Black-headed Grosbeak: Three to four light blue or green eggs with red brown spots are laid in a loosely built stick nest lined with rootlets, grass, and leaves, and built among dense foliage on an outer tree limb. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Black-headed Grosbeak: Diet consists of seeds, insects, berries, and fruits; forages in trees, bushes, and on the ground.

Readily Eats

Safflower, Apple Slices, Suet, Millet, Peanut Kernels, Fruit

Vocalization

Black-headed Grosbeak: Call note is an emphatic, sharp "tick", slightly metallic in tone.

Similar Species

Black-headed Grosbeak: Rose-breasted Grosbeak has heavier streaked white to buff underparts and darker upperparts.

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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.

Black-headed Grosbeak

● Song: "plik"

● Foraging & Feeding: Black-headed Grosbeak: Diet consists of seeds, insects, berries, and fruits; forages in trees, bushes, and on the ground.

● Breeding & nesting: Black-headed Grosbeak: Three to four light blue or green eggs with red brown spots are laid in a loosely built stick nest lined with rootlets, grass, and leaves, and built among dense foliage on an outer tree limb. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Black-headed Grosbeak: Rose-breasted Grosbeak has heavier streaked white to buff underparts and darker upperparts.

Flight Pattern

Short flights wih rapid wing beats.

● Range & Habitat: Black-headed Grosbeak: Breeds from southwestern Canada east to western North Dakota and Nebraska, and south to the mountains of Mexico. Spends winters in Mexico. Preferred habitats include open, deciduous woodlands near water, such as river bottoms, lakeshores, and swampy places with a mixture of trees and shrubs.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationCommon to fairly common

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight1.5 Ounces

Field Guide to Birds of North America