Spot Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans)

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Black Phoebes are small, plump songbirds with large heads and medium-long, squared tails. They often show a slight peak at the rear of the crown. The bill is straight and thin Black Phoebes are mostly sooty gray on the upperparts and chest, with a slightly darker black head. The belly is clean white, and the wing feathers are edged with pale gray. Diet and behavioral habits: A common resident, to Balboa Park, dating back to the 1920’s, the Black Phoebe live along streams, rivers, lakes, and the Pacific Ocean. The Black Phoebe’s diet consists almost entirely of insects, including beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, wild bees, wasps, flies, moths, caterpillars, and they will occasionally eat small fish. Nesting habits: Mud nests, which are probably built by the female, are usually plastered to sheltered spot such as cliff face, bridge support, culvert, or under eaves of buildings. The nest itself is an open cup, and is made of mud mixed with grass and weeds, lined with soft materials such as plant fibers, rootlets, or hair.

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