Black-crested Titmouse
| Black-crested Titmouse | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Paridae |
| Genus: | Baeolophus |
| Species: | B. atricristatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Baeolophus atricristatus Cassin, 1850 | |
| Subspecies | |
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The Black-crested Titmouse (Baeolophus atricristatus) (also known as the Mexican Titmouse), is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. Once considered a subspecies of the Tufted Titmouse (B. bicolor), it was recognized as a separate species[2] in 2002. It is native to southern Texas, Oklahoma, and east-central Mexico. Vagrants have been seen as far north and east as St. Louis, Missouri.
The bird is 5.5 to 6 inches (14 to 15 cm) long, with rusty flanks, gray upperparts, and a whitish belly. The male has a long, dark black crest that is usually erect, while the female's crest is not as dark. It is common wherever trees grow, whether they are deciduous, heavy timber, or urban shade trees. Its call peter, peter, peter is similar to that of the Tufted Titmouse, but shorter. Its diet consists of berries, nuts, spiders, insects, and insect eggs.
The Black-crested Titmouse nests in tree cavities, telephone poles, fence posts, and bird boxes. The eggs, four to seven of which are laid in March or April, are white with reddish-brown spots.
References
- Terres, John K. & National Audubon Society (1991): The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds. Wings Books, New York. Reprint of 1980 edition. ISBN 0-517-03288-0
Notes
- ↑ BirdLife International (2012). "Baeolophus atricristatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ↑ http://www.aou.org/checklist/Suppl43.pdf 43rd Supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union Check-list of North American Birds
External links
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