South Carolina Migratory Birds | Rose Breasted Grosbeak

Best Bird Store Owner and Expert Terry Allen shares about the rose-breasted grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) -a large seed-eating bird that migrates through South Carolina. It's a member of the cardinal family and is known for its bright rose-colored breast patch and black head, wings, back, and tail. 

Rose-breasted grosbeaks are uncommon to fairly common in the Carolina Piedmont during spring and fall migration, but become less common as you move east from the Foothills. They usually migrate through from mid-April to mid-May, and tend to migrate at night. In the spring, males often arrive a few days before the females. 

Although the rose-breasted grosbeak hasn't been confirmed to breed in the mountains of South Carolina, it does breed in the mountains of North Carolina at elevations of 3,500–5,000 feet. In the breeding season, males often return to the same summer area each year and will sing to attract mates, sometimes singing more than 600 songs a day. They also use their body positioning and flight displays to attract mates, and once mated, a pair will stay together for the summer. 

Rose-breasted grosbeaks are vulnerable to habitat loss due to development and other activities that fragment the forests they depend on. Their typical habitat is deciduous woods, such as northern hardwood forests of beech, birch, and sugar maple.