Bird enthusiasts visiting Yosemite National Park will see and experience different bird behaviors depending on the time of year and habitat. During the winter, it is a treat to watch John Muir’s favorite bird, the American dipper, as it plunges underneath ice in its search for aquatic insects and minnows; or a flock of gregarious mountain chickadees and red-breasted nuthatches as they mob a tiny northern pygmy-owl. During spring and fall, large numbers of migrating birds can be seen and heard as they flock through the vegetation, busily foraging on insects, seeds, berries, or other birds to build their fat supplies to supply themselves with fuel for their long journeys. Spring in Yosemite is especially exciting, when neotropical migrant flocks of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and tanagers with brightly colored feathers and melodic songs grace the landscape.