DIPPER (Cinclus mexicanus) 



Dippers are plump, stubby-tailed, slate gray songbirds which have adopted 

 many of the habits of the wading and diving birds. They inhabit clear, 

 cascading mountain streams, feeding on aquatic insects. With their strong 

 legs, special oil glands, and dense plumage, dippers are uniquely adapted 

 to this watery habitat. Dippers have a peculiar habit of bobbing up and 

 down, most often from a spray-drenched rock. When under water, the 

 dipper walks along the stream bottom with the aid of its wings, feeding on 

 water beetles, caddisflies, dragonflies, and other water-dwelling insects 

 and their larvae. The song of the dipper is bubbling and wren-like, and its 

 nest is a domed structure, constructed of grasses and mosses and lined 

 with leaves and rootlets. It is usually placed near water on a rock, under 

 a bridge, or on a ledge behind a waterfall. Dippers are common breeding 

 birds along mountain streams in both Yellowstone and Grand Teton. 



American Robin Leonard Lee Rue lil 



SWAINSON'S THRUSH (Catbarus ustulatus) 



Thrushes are inconspicuous birds which spend much of their time on the 

 ground. The Swainson's thrush is a uniformly brown bird with a spotted 

 breast, and a buffy face and eye-ring. The hermit thrush, which is also 

 common in Yellowstone and Grand Teton, can be distinguished from the 

 Swainson's thrush by its reddish tail. The Swainson's thrush prefers damp 

 areas near water, and may be found in willow thickets, river woods or forest 

 undergrowth. It shows a particular preference for environments where 

 conifers are mixed with aspen. To truly appreciate the thrush one must 

 hear its song, for thrushes are among the most gifted of all songsters. To 

 hear the song at its best, one must retreat to a cool, quiet hillside during 

 the freshness of early morning or in the tranquil stillness of early evening, 

 when the sun casts shafts of slanted light through the trees. In this setting, 

 the thrush pours out its serene, flute-like song, which some consider the 

 most beautiful sound in all of nature. 



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