In this article I’ll be going over 9 orange birds that can be found throughout the state so, continue reading for a more detailed look at each bird below:

• Hooded Oriole
• Cooper’s Hawk
• American Kestrel
• American Robin
• American Redstart
• Varied Thrush
• Red Breasted Nuthatch
• Rufous Hummingbird
• Say’s Pheobe

9 Orange Birds In Nevada

1. Hooded Oriole (Setophaga Citrina)

• Size: 11 – 14cm
• Weight: 9 – 12 grams
• Wingspan: 17 – 19cm

You can find hooded orioles in southern Nevada when they breed. 

Hooded warblers are recognised by their dirty yellow wings, yellow breast, yellow face, black head and chin. Females are mostly the same in color but have fewer black elements on their plumage.

They can be found within mature deciduous forests with a dense understory, as well as smaller forest patches around a shrubby understory.

As for what hooded warblers eat, they can feed on smaller insects and arthopods like caterpillars, moths, grasshoppers, beetles, flies, among other smaller insects and they do also eat fruits like berries.

Hooded warblers can live for around 8 years, which isn’t too long or too short for these smaller birds.

2. Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter Cooperii)

• Size: 35 – 51cm
• Weight: 400 – 700 grams
• Wingspan: 73 – 94cm

You’ll find cooper’s hawks all throughout Nevada on a year round basis. 

Cooper’s hawks are recognised by their gray back and upper head with a orange and white patterned breast, legs and underside of the wing. The females and males look very much the same but, the females are around 30% larger than the opposite gender.

You’ll often find a cooper’s hawk around pines, oaks, Douglas-firs, beeches, spruces, and other tree species, often on flat ground rather than hillsides, and in dense woods.

As for what they eat, it includes mainly medium-sized birds including robins, jays, flickers, among other smaller and even larger birds. Small mammals like chipmunks, tree squirrels, ground squirrels, mice, bats, etc. are included in their diet too.

Cooper’s hawks tend to live for around 10 – 12 years on average whilst the oldest recorded hawk surpassed the 20 year mark.

3. American Kestrel (Falco Sparverius)

• Size: 20 – 24cm
• Weight: 115 – 125 grams
• Wingspan: 50 – 60cm

American kestrels can be found in all of Nevada on a year round basis.

These kestrels are recognised by their spotted orange, gray, black and white plumage with their back orange with a black horizontal pattern, their wings a gray color, black tail feathers and orange sides with a gray and white head that has 2 black lines drawn vertically near both eyes. Females are mostly light brown.

American kestrels can be found in a variety of open or semi-open habitats from forest clearings, farmland and deserts. 

As for what they eat, it includes small mammals such as woodmice and shrews, small birds, insects, earthworms with voles being their go to food source.

Wild Ameican kestrels are known to live for around 5 years but, captive variants have been known to hit 17+ years.

4. American Robin (Turdus Migratorius)

• Size: 12.5 – 14cm
• Weight: 16 – 22 grams
• Wingspan: 20 – 22cm

American robins are year round residents in the majority of Nevada and non-breeding residents in the southern part of the state.

These robins are recognised by by their gray wings, back and tail, black head, yellow beak and orange belly/breast. Females have a far duller color scheme where the plumage that is black is mostly gray whilst the breast is a lighter orange.

American robins are often seen around woodlands, suburban backyards, parks, and grasslands with shrubs.

As for what they eat, it includes fruits, seeds, suet, crushed peanuts, sunflower hearts, raisins and a variety of insects like beetles, flies, worms among many others.

American robins tend to live for an average of 2 years in the wild although some can live upto 5 or 6 years.

5. American Redstart (Setophaga Ruticilla)

• Size: 11 – 14cm
• Weight: 6 – 9 grams
• Wingspan: 16 – 19cm

American redstarts can be found in the majority of Nevada when they migrate.

American redstarts are mostly black with elements of orange/yellow on their wings, side of their breast and the bottom their tail with their breast white in color with the remainder of their body being black. Females are mostly gray, yellow and white.

The habitat American redstarts inhabit include moist, second-growth hardwood forests, with a dense shrub layer and a lot open wooded environments. 

As for what they eat it includes a wide variety of insects including beetles, caterpillars, moths, leafhoppers, aphids, midges, crane flies, daddy longlegs, smaller fruits and seeds.

On average American redstarts will live for around 5 years in the wild whilst the oldest recorded redstart’s lifespan was 10 years old.

6. Varied Thrush (Ixoreus Naevius)

• Size: 20 – 24cm
• Weight: 80 – 90 grams
• Wingspan: 35 – 40cm

Varied thrushes can be found in western regions of Nevada in their fall and winter non-breeding months.

These thrushes are recognised by their black and orange plumage, their neck and breast are orange, their head a wings a mixture of black and orange with thick black horizontal lines across their breast line and eyeline. Females are mostly brown and orange following a very similar pattern to the males but, the brown color replaces the black.

You’ll often find a varied thrush near coniferous forest of various types with dense, wet forest near the coast, in areas of fir, hemlock, and spruce with dense understories being their most common habitat.

Varied thrushes tend to eat insects like beetles, ants, caterpillars, crickets, smaller fruits and berries.

In regards to lifespan, a varied thrush is known to live for around 5 – 6 years.

7. Red Breasted Nuthatch (Sitta Canadensis)

• Size: 11 – 13cm
• Weight: 9 – 13 grams
• Wingspan: 18 – 22cm

Red breasted nuthatches are non-breeding fall and winter residents in southern and northern Nevada and year round residents in the remainder of the state. 

These Nuthatches have rusty orange colored breast feathers, gray wings and back, with a vertical black and white striped pattern on their head. Females are very similar in color scheme but, their plumage does look duller and more washed out.

You can find a red breasted nuthatch around coniferous forests of spruce, fir, pine, hemlock, larch, and western red cedar.

As for what they eat, it includes insects and seeds where they mostly eat spiders in the summer whilst around winter they chow down on a variety of different seeds, especially seeds in conifers.

The lifespan of red breasted nuthatch is around 6 years on average.

8. Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus Rufus)

• Size: 7 – 9cm
• Weight: 2 – 5 grams
• Wingspan: 11 – 12cm

Rufous hummingbirds can be found in Nevada when they migrate.

These hummingbirds are recognised by their mostly orange body with a white breasts, and a mixture of darker brown and white wings. Females on the other hand have hints of orange on their body but are mostly gray with a white breast and belly area.

You’ll often spot rufous hummingbirds around open or shrubby areas, forest openings, yards, and parks, and sometimes in forests, thickets, swamps, and meadows from sea level to about 6,000 feet.

They’ll typically consume the same as what most other hummingbirds would eat such as smaller insects, nectar from flowers, sugar water from feeders and even tree sap.

Roufus hummingbirds are known to live for up to 8 years and 11 months, which is also the longest recorded lifespan.

9. Say’s Pheobe (Sayornis Saya)

• Size: 18 – 20cm
• Weight: 20 – 22 grams
• Wingspan: 32 – 34cm

Say’s pheobes can be found in most of Nevada when they breed, other than the southern part of the state where they will stick around year round.

These birds are recognised by their mostly gray plumage with a rusty orange color around the underside/belly. The females look very similar to the males.

You’ll often find a say’s pheobe around very dry country, far from water which would typically include prairies, badlands, and ranch country. 

Say’s phoebe tend to mostly consume smaller insects but do also eat the occasional berry or smaller fruit.

They also tend to have reasonable lifespan of 8 – 10 years in the wild.