Finding the Phainopepla

It was a hot December afternoon in Clark County Wetlands Park. We’d been in Las Vegas a few days, taking day trips to surrounding national and state parks, but a little searching had revealed a sanctuary, right within the city limits where we could watch birds.This park, located on the eastern outskirts of Las Vegas, was much closer than the Mojave National Preserve or Death Valley which we had yet to explore. Here, Yellow-rumped warblers swooped above the river. Coots and mallards dabbled in the quiet pools near the shoreline. And to our delight, two Great Blue herons lighted on the bridge rail just in front of us. Still, after nearly an hour of wandering the intricate weave of trails, we had not seen the famed desert bird whose name and description had piqued our interest since its first mention: Phainopepla.

I had heard of warblers, fly-catchers; but what was this exotic-sounding thing? Nancy, a friendly employee of the park, who we met a few hundred meters into our walk had first mentioned the name. When we inquired further about the strangely-christened bird, Nancy told us it looked “like a black cardinal with a bad hair day.” That day, however, we were not fated to find a Phainopepla.

Sugata and Deep, early morning in Clark County Wetlands Park

We returned the next morning. This time we caught a first, distant glimpse of a slim bird with a long tail. Though it looked nothing like a chunky cardinal-type, through the binoculars we could just make out the tell-tale crest on its head. Fortunately this would not be our last meeting with a Phainopepla.

Male Phainopepla. The name means "shining robe". 

“You’re in luck,” said the receptionist at the Shoshone Inn. We’d reserved a room there for my birthday and had just inquired about bird watching in the area. “The guy who knows all the birds around here is working in the café tonight. He built the bird trails.” We decided to forgo our usual meal of canned beans with bread, and splurge on dinner at the restaurant. After all, it was my birthday.

Our waiter was tall and thin with a lined and tan face. He had a ready smile and a casual demeanor. When he came to take our order, he turned straight toward me, the only female at the table, pencil poised. “Ladies first” seemed to be etched into his character. It wasn’t until the end of the meal that I mentioned what we all wanted to hear him talk about. “I hear you know something about birds,” I said.

“Birds and girls,” he answered, “that’s about all I know and all I think about.” He didn’t elucidate further what he knew about girls, but began to regale us with tales of birds in the area, especially the Phainopepla, his favorite. “I’d be happy studying just that one bird, all of my life,” he told us. It was from this man (who gave us his youtube handle, Superbirdman88) that we learned about the fascinating lifestyle of the Phainopepla.

First of all, Phainopeplas are great mimics. They imitate the calls of other birds, even red-tailed hawks. They might also mimic other mimics, such as the Crissal Thrasher, which lives in the same area. Superbirdman88's work had involved tracing the different calls that Phainopeplas mimicked.
“Isn’t that confusing for other birds or birders?” I asked.

“You bet it is,” he said. “But after a while, you get familiar with their sound. The Phainopepla has a softer voice.”

Far more juicy was the story of the bird’s courting behavior.

“Out of 10,000 species of birds in the world,” he said, “the Phainopepla is the only one that breeds in two different places each year. They have summer homes and winter homes.”

Mistletoe berries

Each male and female guards its own territory which contains its personal clump of mistletoe berries, the Phainopepla’s main source of food. The fruit of these berries is sticky and when the seeds pass through the bird’s gut and exit, the seeds catch easily on vertically planed surfaces, such as the trees where the Phainopeplas sit. These seeds grow into more mistletoe with more berries, and the circle of parasitic life continues.

Mistletoe seeds sticking to the side of a post

When mating season begins, the birds start their romances slowly with group dates, eventually leading to exclusive dating. In time, the male is so won over by one of the females that he feeds her berries (wedding cake) from his own personal stash. They seal their commitment, for the season.

Superbirdman88 found us on the birding trail the next day and said he’d be happy to bird with us for a little while. We’d already taken one turn around the trail, but when he joined us we were able to learn so much more, not only about this single species of desert bird, but about how everything else connected. The coyotes that travel through the paths, leaving honey mesquite pods in their scat. We saw nests of Crissal Thrashers, listened for sage sparrows, and heard stories about the mating habits of side blotched lizards.

We also saw a lot of Phainopeplas and watched a female chase a male back to his own territory. They’ll probably become lovers, that gray female, and her neighboring black male, when the season for love comes along.

Female Phainopepla in the setting sun.