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The Ovenbird looks and acts like a thrush, but it is in fact a member of the warbler family. They are olive-green above, and white below, with dark streaks. Their eyes are bordered with a light ring, and the crown is orange-brown, bordered with black stripes. The legs are pinkish in colour.
The usual song uttered by the Ovenbird is a loud “teacher, teacher, teacher”, and is repeated as many as ten times. Their flight song, usually heard at night, is a bubbling and quick set of notes, ending with “teacher, teacher”.
Spending much of their time walking on the forest floor of the Algonquin Highlands, the Ovenbird even constructs its nest there. The name comes from the peculiar nests they build, resembling a Dutch oven. The nests have a domed roof, are made of dead leaves and plant fibers, lined with grass, and have a side entrance. The roof provides extra protection against predators. Eggs are white and spotted with brown, females usually laying 4 or 5. When a female is scared out of the nest she will run for a distance before flying, trying to lead the predator away from the nest. Yong Ovenbirds are given every chance for survival.
Hatchlings do not call out, and are fed large and infrequent meals, reducing the number of times the parents must visit the nest. This increases safety as well for the young, who will leave the nest at only seven days. Although they cannot yet fly, the young will be divided, each parent taking half, and given further chances for survival by not sitting in a nest on the ground.
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OVENBIRD
Seiurus aurocapillus
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