Scientific Name: Pheucticus melanocephalus

Residency: Resides throughout most of Arizona in the summertime, except for the very southwest corner of the state which is a migration zone.

Diet: Feeds on insects, berries and seeds, including spiders and snails. Also able to feed on monarch butterflies.

Predators:  Steller's Jay and Shrub Jay prey upon nests.

Nesting: The female makes the nest from twigs, pine needles, weeds, and rootlets; the lining is made out of materials such as animal hair and thin grass. It is cup shaped and bulky and can usually be found in trees or large shrubs. Pale blue-green eggs with red to brown spots are laid two to five at a time.

Nesting Records: 

Notes: The Black-headed Grosbeak is now able to hybridize with the Rose-breasted Grosbeak, its eastern counterpart, because the treeless prairies of the Central Plains that formerly served as a natural barrier between the two has become settled with towns and homesteads, providing a suitable habitat for each species.

Photo: to be added soon.