Black Phoebe
Bird 5 of 5
Yay! You found me!
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I’m a non-migratory bird native to the San Lorenzo riverbed.
Did you know that Phoebes are thought to be spirit-energizers, with our high-pitched chirp and swooping flight? I love to be near water sources and use mud from them to build cup-shaped nests against walls, overhangs and bridges. My favorite foods are insects and I’m a savvy flycatcher. I sit on a favorite perch and watch for an insect to fly by, then glide out to catch it in mid-air. You might hear my beak snap shut when I do! I tend to get a little territorial about my habitat and chase off other birds who get too close.
Black Phoebe’s have been rescued 46 times by the Native Animal Rescue in the past 5 years.
Listen to my tune.
Photographer credit: Jack Sutton
Keep questing and find the other birds!
(Snowy Egret, Red-Tailed Hawk, Lesser Goldfinch, Bewick’s Wren)
Thank you to the Santa Cruz Arts Council, The Tannery Art Complex, Radius Gallery, Santa Cruz Bird Club, Native Animal Rescue (Lisa Rose), Lorrie Klosterman (author of Animals and Plants of Monterey Bay: Santa Cruz Shoreline), The Bird School Project (Kevin Condon) for making this public installation project possible.