Verdin

Auriparus flaviceps

eBird describes the Verdin like this:  Tiny, unique songbird with a sharply pointed bill. Mostly plain gray with a yellow head. Small rufous patch on shoulders is sometimes visible. Juveniles lack the yellow head; note bill shape to help separate from Lucy’s Warbler or Bushtit. Forages solo or in pairs in scrubby arid habitats, especially mesquite. Occasionally visits hummingbird feeders for nectar; primarily feeds on insects.  All About Birds adds this information about the Verdin:  In the heat of desert arroyos and scrublands, tiny grayish Verdins flash bright colors—a yellow head and chestnut shoulder patch. More slender and small-headed than a chickadee, these restless birds comb the foliage of trees for insects and spiders, sometimes hanging upside down to investigate hard-to-reach places. They supplement their insect diet with fruits and even nectar, which they may sip from hummingbird feeders. Verdins build unusual spherical nests, often making several per year and using them for roosting throughout the year.

I saw my first Verdin at the Corn Creek Station of the Desert Wildlife Preserve out side of Las Vegas, Nevada, on May 22, 2021.  I was walking the Songbird Trail when I spotted the bird high up in a tree.  It didn’t stay around long, but I did get one decent photograph.  For the blog I wrote about my trip that includes sighting this bird, look here. 

Verdin at Corn Creek Station, May 22, 2021.


“Cool Facts” About the Verdin From All About Birds:

  • The Verdin is the only bird in the genus Auriparus. Although it resembles members of the chickadee family (Paridae) superficially, it’s in a different family altogether—the only representative of the Old World family Remizidae in all of North America.
  • The Verdin builds nests for both breeding and roosting; roosting nests are much smaller. The outer stick shell is constructed mostly by the male, while the female does most of the lining.
  • The Verdin’s roosting nests help it stay warm in winter. These nests have thick insulation and may reduce the energy required to stay warm by as much as 50%. Nests built in summer open toward prevailing winds, perhaps to aid in cooling.
  • The Verdin builds roosting nests all year round. One pair of Verdins in Arizona was observed building 11 nests in one year.
  • The oldest recorded Verdin was at least 5 years, 7 months old when it was recaptured and rereleased during banding operations.