Summer Tanager Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesSummer Tanager
Adult male
Full-bodied songbird with a big head and a thick blunt-tipped bill. Adult males are brilliant red overall.
© Alex Burdo / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 16, 2016Female
Medium-sized songbird. Females are yellowish overall with a pinkish or horn-colored bill.
© Don Danko / Macaulay LibraryChiapas, March 21, 2019Immature male
Immature males are splotchy yellow and red. The amount of red depends on age as they molt into the red plumage of adults.
© Louis Bevier / Macaulay LibraryTolima, January 30, 2019Female
Hefty songbird with a slightly crested head (not always visible). Females are yellowish overall with a pale horn-colored bill.
© Janice Neitzel / Macaulay LibraryAlabama, January 07, 2016Adult male
Chunky entirely red songbird often found in the canopy where it catches bees and wasps.
© Janet Rathjen / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 18, 2015Adult male
Found in gaps and edges of open deciduous or pine-oak forests.
© Jim Gain / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, September 18, 2016Similar SpeciesScarlet Tanager
Adult male
Scarlet Tanagers—including males, females, and immatures—have black or blackish wings that contrast with the body, unlike Summer Tanagers.
© Charmaine Anderson / Macaulay LibraryOntario, May 16, 2017Similar SpeciesScarlet Tanager
Female
Female Scarlet Tanagers have darker blackish wings whereas female/immature Summer Tanagers have yellowish wings.
© Mike V.A. Burrell / Macaulay LibraryOntario, May 15, 2016Similar SpeciesWestern Tanager
Female
Female/immature Western Tanagers have blackish wings as well as bold wingbars, whereas Summer Tanagers have yellower unmarked wings.
© Arlene Ripley / Macaulay LibraryArizona, July 16, 2017Similar SpeciesHepatic Tanager
Adult male
Hepatic Tanagers have gray cheek patches and a grayish tinted back whereas adult male Summer Tanagers are entirely red. Also note the round head on Hepatic versus a slightly crested head on Summer Tanagers.
© Aaron Marshall / Macaulay LibraryArizona, April 06, 2009Similar SpeciesHepatic Tanager
Female/immature male
Female/immature Hepatic Tanagers have darker bills than female/immature Summer Tanagers which have pale pinkish or horn-colored bills. They also have a grayish face and back that Summers lack.
© Griffin Richards / Macaulay LibraryArizona, December 22, 2015Similar SpeciesNorthern Cardinal
Male
Male Northern Cardinals have a long, pointed crest, black feathers around the face, and a heavy, triangular, reddish bill unlike adult male Summer Tanagers, which are entirely red with a longer, thinner bill.
© Alix d'Entremont / Macaulay LibraryNova Scotia, May 02, 2017Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Cardinals and Allies(Order: Passeriformes, Family: Cardinalidae)
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