Cherrie's Tanager
Encyclopedia
The Cherrie's Tanager, Ramphocelus costaricensis, is a medium-sized passerine
bird
. This tanager
is a resident breeder in the Pacific lowlands of Costa Rica
and western Panama
. This bird was formerly known as the Scarlet-rumped Tanager, but was split as a separate species from the Caribbean
form, which was itself renamed as Passerini's Tanager
, Ramphocelus passerinii. While most authorities have accepted this split, there are notable exceptions (e.g. the Howard and Moore checklist
).
Cherrie's Tanager is very common from sea level to 1200 m altitude, and occurs occasionally up to 1700 m. The preferred habitat is semi-open areas including light second growth, woodland edges, gardens and pasture with bushes. The cup nest is built up to 6 m high in a tree. The normal clutch is two pale blue or grey eggs, marked with black, brown or lilac. This species will sometimes raise two broods in a season.
The adult Cherrie's Tanager is 16 cm long and weighs 31 g. The adult male is mainly black except for a scarlet rump, silvery bill and dark red iris. The female has a grey head, olive upperparts, orange rump, brownish wings and tail, and ochre underparts with a broad orange breast band. The female plumage is the one that differs most from Passerini's Tanager. Immatures resemble the adult female, but with a less orange breast.
Cherrie's Tanagers occur in pairs, small groups, or as part of a mixed-species feeding flock
, and up to a dozen birds may roost together in dense thickets at night. This species feeds on small fruit
, usually swallowed whole, insect
s and spider
s.
The Cherrie's Tanager’s call is a sharp wac. Its song consists of a few clear pleasant notes, delivered in longer phrases than that of its Caribbean relative.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
. This tanager
Tanager
The tanagers comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has an American distribution.There were traditionally about 240 species of tanagers, but the taxonomic treatment of this family's members is currently in a state of flux...
is a resident breeder in the Pacific lowlands of Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
and western Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
. This bird was formerly known as the Scarlet-rumped Tanager, but was split as a separate species from the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
form, which was itself renamed as Passerini's Tanager
Passerini's Tanager
Passerini's Tanager, Ramphocelus passerinii, is a medium-sized passerine bird. This tanager is a resident breeder in the Caribbean lowlands from southern Mexico to western Panama...
, Ramphocelus passerinii. While most authorities have accepted this split, there are notable exceptions (e.g. the Howard and Moore checklist
Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World
The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World is a book by Richard Howard and Alick Moore which presents a list of the bird species of the world...
).
Cherrie's Tanager is very common from sea level to 1200 m altitude, and occurs occasionally up to 1700 m. The preferred habitat is semi-open areas including light second growth, woodland edges, gardens and pasture with bushes. The cup nest is built up to 6 m high in a tree. The normal clutch is two pale blue or grey eggs, marked with black, brown or lilac. This species will sometimes raise two broods in a season.
The adult Cherrie's Tanager is 16 cm long and weighs 31 g. The adult male is mainly black except for a scarlet rump, silvery bill and dark red iris. The female has a grey head, olive upperparts, orange rump, brownish wings and tail, and ochre underparts with a broad orange breast band. The female plumage is the one that differs most from Passerini's Tanager. Immatures resemble the adult female, but with a less orange breast.
Cherrie's Tanagers occur in pairs, small groups, or as part of a mixed-species feeding flock
Mixed-species feeding flock
A mixed-species feeding flock, also termed a mixed-species foraging flock, mixed hunting party or informally bird wave, is a flock of usually insectivorous birds of different species, that join each other and move together while foraging...
, and up to a dozen birds may roost together in dense thickets at night. This species feeds on small fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
, usually swallowed whole, insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s and spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s.
The Cherrie's Tanager’s call is a sharp wac. Its song consists of a few clear pleasant notes, delivered in longer phrases than that of its Caribbean relative.