Birds Of A Feather: Red Birds For The Season

By Bob Graham

Up till now, my articles have keyed in on some of the white birds that we see in the San Miguel area. But since I am doing the December Birds of a Feather column, I thought it appropriate, given the holiday season, that I feature some of the red birds that we see in our area.

The most appropriate red bird to start with, is the Vermilion Flycatcher.  I have mentioned this beautiful bird before because Lillian Birkenstein, the founder of Audubon Society de México chose this attractive bird as its symbol rather than the Great Egret of the National Audubon Society. Lillian chose the male Vermilion, appropriately I think, because not only is it one of México’s most attractive and colorful birds, but it is found throughout the entire country.

They are a member of the Tyrant family.  However, with its brilliant vermilion color, males are a striking exception to the otherwise mostly drab members of this family.  Female Vermilion Flycatchers are similar to other members of this family in that, except for a pinkish belly, they are drab.  Interestingly, first year females have a yellowish wash to their belly.

Vermilion Flycatchers prefer riparian habitat, which is natural vegetation close to water with moist soil. So, watch for these small, Christmas tree ornament like beauties around the arroyos, streams and waterways of San Miguel de Allende.  As the flycatcher name implies, Vermilions feed mainly on flies, along with grasshoppers. They typically perch at the end of small branches from which they keep a sharp eye on the sky above.

The next bird that fits this holiday season theme is the Northern Cardinal. Cardinals are a fairly common sight in the San Miguel region and are almost always seen on the local Audubon de México bird hikes. Unfortunately, in this region, they spend most of their time skulking away in the brush, which makes them a difficult photographic subject. The photo shows, if nothing else, the brilliant crimson red color of the male of this species. Being so brightly colored even when they are hidden in the thickets, they are  easy to spot. It is from this color that Northern Cardinals get their name. To the people that named them, their color appears to be similar to the attire worn by Cardinals, the highest-ranking members of the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church.

The final bird we will look at is the male House Finch.  Although not as intensely colorful as the other two birds we have highlighted, it makes up for it with its cheerful, warbling song ending in a distinctive high pitched note. 

Unlike the other two species which are loners, House Finches forage for seed in flocks, being especially fond of thistles, dandelions and sunflower seeds.  Cardinals, which readily visit feeders in northern regions, rarely do that here in México, but House Finch readily do so. 

House Finches locally are also very fond of foraging on ripe tuna, (no, not fish) but the fruit of the prickly pear cactus. 

By the way, their fondness for tuna is thought to be the reason that male House Finches here are a more intense red than are seen in other areas where these fruits are not available. 

So, a great place to see and photograph them locally is the Botanical Gardens of the Charco del Ingenio. 

One of my favorite other photos I have taken of a House Finch there is of a male bird sticking its head up between two red tuna. If you look at the picture quickly, you might think that there are three tuna there. NOT, as is really the case, that is of a finch head between two fruit!