Ovenbird

About the Ovenbird

A warbler that walks. The Ovenbird strolls the forest floor like a tiny thrush, bobbing along on pink legs with its tail cocked and its orange crown stripe raised, flipping leaves in search of insects. Olive above and boldly streaked below, with a crisp white eyering, it looks like no other warbler that passes through Texas.

The name comes from the nest, a domed affair of woven leaves and grass built right on the forest floor with a side entrance - early naturalists thought it looked like a dutch oven. The female builds it entirely alone and slips on and off it by walking, not flying, to avoid drawing eyes to the spot.

Its song is one of the great sounds of eastern forests - an emphatic teacher-teacher-TEACHER that grows louder with each phrase and carries farther than the bird ever shows itself. In migration through Central Texas the birds are mostly silent and secretive, working shady thickets and creek bottoms.

Look for them on the ground in April-May and again in fall, in the same dark tangles that hide waterthrushes. Patience at a dripping water feature during migration is the classic way to earn the photograph.