Meet the Summer Tanager!

Our "splotchy" looking friend here is a First Spring Summer Tanager, soon to fill out and turn a beautiful deep orange. The female is a subtle mustard yellow, so she doesn't jump out quite as much.

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The Summer Tanagers spend their summers up north, in the mid US and as far as the east coast and their winters in Mexico, sometimes all the way to mid South America. The Rio Grande Valley serves as a way station for these travelers.

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During the fall migration, you can usually find them in many of our parks and other brushy areas. A Summer Tanager's diet consists mainly of bugs. They like bees and spiders. Sometimes you can see them darting around the air (like a Purple Martin) chasing their dinner!

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The one pictured here stopped by a backyard habitat for a few days not far from The Lamb's Loom!

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It is always a treat to see one in the Spring or Fall migration time, so keep those eyes peeled!