The Phainopepla's existence varies year to year. They depend on their very unstable food source, mistletoe berries. (Reader's Digest, 1998)
Perception Channels: visual ; tactile ; acoustic ; chemical
(Reader's Digest, 1998)
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
The Phainopepla does not seem to directly affect humans.
The Phainopepla does not seem to directly affect humans.
The Phainopepla's diet consists of the berries of mistletoe(Phoradendron macrophyllum). When these berries are hard to find they consume small insects. (Reader's Digest, 1998)
Phainopeplas can be found in central California, southern Nevada, southern Utah, southern New Mexico, and western Texas. South to Baja and into Mexico. During the winters, these birds are found in southern California, southern Nevada, central Arizona, southern New Mexico and southern Texas.(Reader's Digest, 1998)
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native )
The Phainopepla is found throughout desert ecosystems. They are primarily found in washes, riparian areas, and other habitats that support arid scrubs. If they are found near coastal areas, they prefer oak chaperral and riparian oak woodlands. (Reader's Digest, 1998)
Terrestrial Biomes: desert or dune ; chaparral
On average, the Phainopepla reaches a length of 16 cm. Their bills are short and thin. They have have a dark crest with the males having an entirely black plumage, while the females have a grey plumage. During flight, white wing patches are visible. They have a very long tail and the juveniles look very similiar to that of the female. (Reader's Digest, 1998)
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Phainopepla's breeding habitat is that of a successional-scrub, usually in mesquite brush lands. They are known to nest in the early spring. The eggs are grayish-white or pinkish, and are spotted with black, pale lavender, or gray. The eggs are incubated by both the male and female for up to fifteen days. The young are taken care of for eighteen to nineteen days by both parents before leaving the nest. (Reader's Digest, 1998)
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; oviparous
The phainopepla or northern phainopepla[2] (Phainopepla nitens) is the most northerly representative of the mainly tropical Central American family Ptiliogonatidae, the silky flycatchers. Its name is from the Greek phain pepla meaning "shining robe" in reference to the male's plumage.
The phainopepla is a striking bird, 16–20 cm (6.3–7.9 in) long with a noticeable crest and a long tail; it is slender, and has an upright posture when it perches. Its bill is short and slender. The male is glossy black, and has a white wing patch that is visible when it flies; the female is plain gray and has a lighter gray wing patch. Both sexes have red eyes, but these are more noticeable in the female than the male.
The phainopepla ranges as far north as central California with the San Joaquin Valley and southern Utah, and south to central Mexico, the interior Mexican Plateau region; the southern edge of the plateau, the transverse mountains is its non-breeding home. It is found in hot areas, including desert oases, and is readily seen in the deserts of Arizona, southern Nevada, and southern California; also the Baja Peninsula, both Baja California-(north), and Baja California Sur where they are the only breeding resident birds. Extreme individuals have travelled as far as Canada, with one bird in 2009 reaching as far north as Brampton, Ontario, Canada.[3]
Their diet consists of berries, any small insects, fruits, vegetables. Phainopeplas have a specialized mechanism in their gizzard that shucks berry skins off the fruit and packs the skins separately from the rest of the fruit into the intestines for more efficient digestion. So far this is the only known bird able to do this. They appear to relish the fruit of Phoradendron californicum, the desert mistletoe.
It nests in the spring. The eggs are gray or pink and speckled, and the incubation, done by both the male and female, takes fifteen days. The young will be reared by the parents for up to nineteen more days.[4]
Phainopeplas have been found to imitate the calls of twelve other species, such as the red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) and the northern flicker (Colaptes auratus).[5]
The phainopepla or northern phainopepla (Phainopepla nitens) is the most northerly representative of the mainly tropical Central American family Ptiliogonatidae, the silky flycatchers. Its name is from the Greek phain pepla meaning "shining robe" in reference to the male's plumage.
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