The red-crowned ant tanager is a medium-sized passerine bird from tropical America. It is the only species now placed in the genus Habia. This species was long placed with the tanagers (Thraupidae), but it is actually closer to the cardinals (Cardinalidae).
Region
Neotropics
Typical Environment
Occurs from southern Mexico through much of Central America and across northern and eastern South America, including the Amazon and Atlantic Forest regions. Prefers humid lowland and foothill forests, second growth, edges, and riparian thickets. It forages mainly in the shaded understory, often 1–5 m above ground, and regularly attends army ant swarms. It adapts reasonably well to semi-open woodland and tall secondary growth where cover remains.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1500 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Despite its name, the red-crowned ant tanager is now placed with the cardinals (Cardinalidae), not the true tanagers. It frequently follows army ant swarms to snatch insects flushed from the leaf litter. Males are largely reddish with a concealed scarlet crown patch that can be raised when excited; females are more olive-yellow with a subtler crown stripe. It often travels in pairs or small family groups in the dim forest understory.
Temperament
social and active
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Often seen in pairs or small family groups, and sometimes joins mixed-species understory flocks. Pairs maintain territories and communicate with soft calls while foraging. The nest is typically a cup placed low in dense vegetation; both parents participate in care.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Song is a series of clear, whistled phrases interspersed with sharp chips, delivered from low perches in the understory. Calls include soft tchik and thin weet notes used to keep contact, especially near ant swarms.
Plumage
Male is mostly rich rufous-red with a concealed bright red crown patch; wings and tail concolorous and without wingbars. Female is olive-brown above with yellowish to buffy underparts and a yellow-orange crown stripe that may be partly hidden. Both sexes have a stout, thick-based bill and relatively plain wings.
Diet
Eats a variety of arthropods such as ants, beetles, spiders, and caterpillars, often captured as they flee advancing army ants. Also consumes small fruits and berries, particularly when insect prey is less abundant. Gleans from leaves and twigs, makes short sallies, and occasionally takes prey from the ground.
Preferred Environment
Forages in the shaded understory of humid forests, along streams, and in dense second growth. Frequently attends army ant swarms where it remains active at the swarm edge.
