FUN FACTS ABOUT AMERICAN REDSTARTS

APPEARANCE:

Adult male American Redstarts are mostly black.  They have red patches on their sides, wings and tails.  The belly of the adult male is white.

Females and immature males of the American Redstart family have yellow-orange instead of red on their sides, wings and tales.  Their heads are gray, along with their underparts.  The tails of the females and immature males are dark-gray.  Their backs and wings are olive colored.

SONG:

Males have a sweet explosive song, especially during the spring and early summer.

During breeding season males will sing a series of 2-11, high pitched notes, which may end with an accented phrase.  Some people think that this song sounds like a sneeze.

Both males and females will use a number of different calls, depending upon the situation.  These sounds include sharp, sweet-sounding chip notes, soft tsip calls, and high-pitched alarm calls.

BEHAVIOR:

American Redstarts never seem to sit still.

They are insectivores, which startle their insect prey by rapidly spreading their cocked tails.  This exposes the orange in a quick flash.

Males defend their territory using song, posturing and displays in flight.

Females will also defend their territory against other females.

RANGE/HABITAT:

The American Redstart especially likes open forests that are dominated by deciduous trees.

Its winter habitat is in the tropical woodlands and open forests at lower and mid-elevations.

FOOD:

American Redstarts are mostly insect eaters, eating leafhoppers, planthopper, flies, moths and larvae, wasps, and beetles.

Late summer they will also eat small berries and fruits.

They look for food, both on the ground and near the top of the canopy.

NESTING:

Early in courtship, the males will show the females potential nest sites, which she will test out until she finds one that she likes.

Nests are camouflaged, and usually supported by the main trunks of the tree or bushes along with other vertical branches/stems.

Nest sites may be found in maples, birch, ash, hawthorn, alder, eastern white cedar, cherry, balsam poplar, and willow.

Females will build the nests themselves, taking 3-7 days.

Both males and females bring food to the nest.

The cup of the nest is made up of tightly woven small fibers, which may include birch bark strips, grasses, milkweed seed hairs, animal hairs, feathers, rootlets, leaves, lichens, twigs, mosses, pine needles, and wasp nest paper.

Nest size:  2-3” across and 2-3” high on the outside.  The inner cup is about 2” across and 1.5” deep.

Clutch size:  1-5 eggs

Incubation period:  10-13 days

Nestling period:  7-13 days

Egg Description:  White to off-white with blotches of brown or reddish coloring

ATTRACTING COMMON AMERICAN REDSTARTS TO YOUR YARD:

During the late summer, American Redstarts like plants with small berries and fruits, for example serviceberry and magnolia

OTHER FUN AMERICAN REDSTART FACTS:

American Redstarts are a part of the Warbler Family.

Although they are mostly monogamous, sometimes male American Redstarts will have two mates at the same time.

If an American Redstart has two mates, he will also have two separate territories.

Males will not start attracting a second mate until the first has completed her clutch in is incubating the eggs.

The oldest known American Redstart was 10 years when he was recaptured.

 

Info and photo from All About Birds