top of page

Birds of Zihuatanejo

CLASS AVES

Western Tanager

Piranga ludoviciana

The adult male has brilliant red head, bright yellow body, with black back, wings, and tail. 2 wing bars; smaller uppermost bar yellow, lower one white. Female is yellow-green above, yellow below; wing bars similar to male's. Feeds on insects, often like a flycatcher, from the high canopy. It also feeds on berries and other small fruits. The red pigment in the face is not produced by the bird but is acquired through their diet of insects that themselves acquire it from plants. Both parents feed and tend the young, which leave the nest after about 11 days, but stay close to the parents for about two more weeks.

bottom of page