Rose-breasted Grosbeaks Courting in Our Garden

This gorgeous bird recently arrived from his wintering grounds in Central and South America. Last week he was singing exuberantly from the deck railing, loudly enough to draw me out of the house to enjoy it. His sweet whistles also attracted the attention of a female who flew into one of the nearby native birch trees we planted. Their large pink bills are just about the only way to tell these two are the same species! She watched and listened intently while snacking on a few bugs. Our placement of the trees seemed to create a perfect amphitheater for her to check him out.

Left: Garden; Right: Female Rose-breasted Grosbeak by James St. John, (CC BY-SA 2.0)

The loud, beautiful song of the male seemed to seal the deal – after a minute or so she flew off into the woods and he followed, presumably for some privacy.

Assuming these two are a pair, they will split their parental duties. Both will take turns sitting on the eggs during the day, while she takes the night shift. They sing quietly to each other when they exchange places. He sometimes sings his normal song at full volume from inside the nest.

We hope these two are a pair and that they will we raise young in our garden this summer. We’ve tried to provide good habitat for them!