Verdin, Auriparus flaviceps, photographed at Desert Botanical Gardens, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Image: Terry Sohl, 13 September 2006 [velociraptorize].
Canon 20D, 400 5.6L.
Question: This beautiful and tiny North American bird belongs to an avian group that was given its name in honor of the sort of nest they build. Can you identify this species and tell me the name of the group they belong to?
Response: This is an adult verdin, Auriparus flaviceps, a species of penduline tit. This family is known as the penduline tits because they are related to the true tits, but unlike true tits, they weave elaborate bag nests that hang from trees (whence "penduline" for hanging), usually over water. It will interest you to learn that, despite the name of this family, verdins are unusual in this taxonomic family because they do not construct such nests.
If you have bird images, video or mp3 files that you'd like to share with a large and appreciate audience, feel free to email them to me for consideration.
.png?w=600)
