Overview
American Dipper: Small, wren-like bird, dark gray with short, cocked tail, white eyelids that flash when blinked. Straight black bill. Wades, swims and dives for food. Feeds on aquatic insects, larvae, clams, snails, crustaceans, and small fish. Strong direct flight on rapid wing beats.
Range and Habitat
American Dipper: Found from northern treeline in Alaska, throughout the Rockies, Cascades, and Sierra Nevada, and as far south as Panama. Inhabits swift flowing mountain streams; less frequently found along mountain ponds and lakes. Occasionally appears on rocky coasts during winter.
Dippers (Cinclidae)
ORDER
The PASSERIFORMES (pronounced pas-ser-i-FOR-meez) is a large taxonomic order that counts swallows, warblers, bushtits, and dippers among its one hundred eighteen families of birds.
FAMILY TAXONOMY
The Cinclidae (pronounced SIN-kluh-dee), or dipper family, is composed of five species in one genus ranging in the Americas and Eurasia.
NORTH AMERICA
In North America, one species of dipper in one genus is found. This species is the American Dipper.
KNOWN FOR
Dippers are known for their highly aquatic behavior. Like all members of this family, the American Dipper frequently submerges into the water of streams and lakes in search of prey, sometimes even appearing to swim or even walk along the bottom.
PHYSICAL
Dippers are fairly small, plump birds with short tails, short wings, and longish, strong legs and feet. They also have rounded heads and straight, pointed, medium length bills.
COLORATION
The American Dipper is a slate gray bird with darker plumage on the head. Even the legs of this species are gray. Other members of the Cinclidae elsewhere in the world are dark brown, and depending on the species, can show white or rufous throats, or a white crown.
GEOGRAPHIC HABITAT
In North America, the American Dipper is a bird of the coasts and mountains of western Canada and the United States. It also occurs in the mountains of Mexico and Central America. Like other members of the Cinclidae, the American Dipper only occurs along healthy, clean streams and rivers. It also occurs less often at mountain ponds and lakes, and along the coast in the winter.
MIGRATION
The American Dipper does not migrate although it may move to lower elevations during the winter to search for open water.
HABITS
Dippers are solitary birds that feed at the edge and underneath the water, walking along stream beds to forage for small creatures among the rocks and gravel. Like other birds that live near rivers, they have high-pitched vocalizations loud enough to be heard over the rushing water. They often make bobbing, or “dipping” movements from which they get their name.
CONSERVATION
The American Dipper is not threatened although it is susceptible to alteration and pollution of its river habitats.
INTERESTING FACTS
Dippers have some interesting adaptations for their aquatic behavior. They have pale, nictating membranes for protecting their eyes when underwater, a thick coat of feathers to keep them warm, nasal flaps to keep water out of the nose, and a high capacity for carrying oxygen in their bloodstream which allows them to stay underwater longer.