A blue and yellow turquoise tanager perched on a branch. — Photo: Ingrid Torres de Macedo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Turquoise Tanager

Tangara mexicana

A small, shiny blue-and-black tanager from South American forests that lives in tight family flocks.

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About the Turquoise Tanager

Turquoise tanagers are about 5.5 inches long and weigh about 20 grams, as much as four nickels. Males and females both have metallic blue, turquoise and black feathers. They live year-round in humid forests of northeastern South America, including Brazil, Colombia and Trinidad, often at forest edges and along rivers. They eat mostly berries and fruit, plus small insects.^[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name: Tangara mexicana^[1]
Size: About 5.5 inches long.^[1]
Weight: About 20 grams.^[1]
Diet: Mostly berries and fruit, plus small insects.^[1]
Habitat: Humid tropical forests, forest edges and riversides.^[1]
Where it lives: Northeastern South America, including Brazil, Colombia and Trinidad.^[1]
Group life: Groups of 3 to 10.^[1]
Babies: 2 or 3 white, brown-spotted eggs.^[1]
Conservation status: Least Concern (IUCN Red List, assessed 2024).^[2]

Fun facts

Several adults in a flock may help feed the chicks.^[1]
Its scientific name is Tangara mexicana, but it doesn't live in Mexico.^[1]
Pairs sing duets and sometimes share berries.^[1]

Vocabulary

frugivore: An animal that eats mostly fruit.
canopy: The top layer of a forest, made of treetops.
duet: A song performed by two together.
songbird: A perching bird that can sing; songbirds make up about half of all bird species.
least concern: A conservation label meaning a species is widespread and not at risk of dying out soon.

See it in person

Smithsonian's National ZooWashington, D.C. · Bird HouseSee this animal on the zoo's website ↗

These zoos had this animal when we gathered our information, but animals sometimes move. Check the zoo's website or contact the zoo before you visit.

Sources

[1] Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. “Turquoise tanager.” https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/turquoise-tanager (accessed 2026-10-08)
[2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Tangara mexicana (Turquoise Tanager).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/103849376/264361543 (accessed 2026-10-08)

Facts last checked 2026-10-08.

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