Scarlet-rumped Tanager, Ramphocelus passerinii

Scarlet-rumped Tanager, Ramphocelus passerinii, Female. Photograph taken in the lowlands adjacent to the Arenal Volcano (Volcán Arenal) in northwestern Costa Rica, February 2023. Photograph and identification courtesy of Dr. Tom Bartol, Carlsbad, California.

Scarlet-rumped Tanager, Ramphocelus passerinii, Male. Photographs taken in the lowlands adjacent to the Arenal Volcano (Volcán Arenal) in northwestern Costa Rica, February 2016 and February 2023. Photographs and identifications courtesy of Dr. Tom Bartol, Carlsbad, California.

The Scarlet-rumped Tanager, Ramphocelus passerinii, is also known as Passerini’s Tanager, is a member of the Thraupidae Family of Tanagers and Allies. They are small in stature. In Mexico they are found within both the Atlantic Slope and the Pacific Slope in the southern states of Chiapas, Tabasco and Veracruz at elevations between 1,200 m (3,940 feet) and 1,700 m (5,575 feet). From a conservation perspective the Scarlet-rumped Tanager is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are found in clearings within small trees, thickets, brush along the edges of forests and along the edges of streams. They consume insects, spiders and a wide variety of seasonal fruits when available.