SCIENTIFIC NAME

Common Name

Spring

Arrival

Fall Depart.

Confused With?

Breed Habitat

Status

Comments

Dendroica petechia

Yellow

Early

July onward

Decid.; wet areas; willow

Decline in W. USA

46 subspp.; many endemics; lg. geographical breeding area

D.

pennsylvanica

Chestnut-sided

More E., Long

Golden-winged

Deciduous; 2nd grow.

Local declines in E

Freq cowb host; declines when mature forests return to an area

D.

magnolia

Magnolia

Often early

Immature Prairie

Conif. forest; esp. spruce

Increases in New Engl.

“Spruce Warbler” would be apt name; it often nests in spruces

D.

tigrina

Cape May

Early

Conif. forest; bogs

Fluctuate; cyclical

Arboreal; “fighter,” often defend. food sources (fruit/nect)

D.

caerulescens

Black-Throated Blue

Late

F. w/ Orange Cr., Tennessee

Deciduous & mixed woods

On "Watch List"

Nests in decid. or mixed woods; Highly dimorphic (male-female)

D.

virens

Black-Throated Green

Golden-cheeked; Town/Hermit hybrids

conifif/mixed woods

Varies yearly

Winters in second growth/edges, thus able to survive deforestat.

D.

dominica

Yellow-throated

Very early

Early

Grace´s

Low. forest; Sp. moss imp

Expanding N and E?

Creeping foraging behavior is tell-tale clue; often up high

D.

pinus

Pine

Early

Late

Fall Blackpoll,

Bay-breasted

Pines, other conifs.

Stable in S. range (?)

Large, long-tailed, heavy-billed; dist. trill; among hardiest warbs.

D.

kirtlandii

Kirtland´s

Late?

Palm, Prairie: tail

Jack pines in MI and ?

On Fed. End. List

Rare; cowbird management and habitat management important

D.

discolor

Prairie

Male Pine; Fall Magnolia; Palm (tail)

Successional habitats

On "Watch List"

BBS data shows recent declines over most of range

D.

castanea

Bay-breasted

Long, extended

Fall Bay-breasted’s w Fall Blackpolls

Boreal forests

< when < mat. forests

Populations vary with yearly spruce budworm populations

D.

striata

Blackpoll

Often late

More E. than sp´s

Fall w/ 1st fall Bay-breasted

Wet conifers

Often abundant

Most highly-migratory wood warbler (2,150 miles autumn flight for east USA migrators)

D.

fusca

Blackburnian

Rel. early, E.

1st fall F w/ Cerulean; imm. F. Townsend

Mixed forest; tall, mature conifers

Vulnerable due to hab. changes

Hemlocks often are nesting site; Usnea lichen often used in n. areas; spanish moss in s. USA

D.

coronata

Yellow-rumped

Early

Late

Vocal & plumage distinct: Audubon vs. Myrtle

Conifers, mixed forests

BBS shows no trends

Myrtle Group has two subspp; Audubon Group variation is more detailed/complex

D.

cerulea

Cerulean

Early

One of earliest

Fs and 1st fall males look like 1st fall female Blackburnian

Old growth, mature deciduous forests

Numbers down; On "Watch List"

BBS suggests major drops in breeding bird populations.  Degradation of both winter. and summer habitats

SCIENTIFIC NAME

Common Name

Spring

Arrival

Fall Depart.

Confused With?

Breed Habitat

Status

Comment

V ermivora pinus

Blue-winged

Early

Usually early

Yellow, Prothonot

Wide variety s’cess.

N, NE expansion

May mate w/ Golden-winged warbler; resulting shared field marks create Brewster’s or Lawrence’s” warbler

V.

chrysoptera

Golden-winged

After blue-wi

S’cess habitats

On Watch List

BBS data indicates decline over most of range, especially northeastern USA

V.

peregrina

Tennessee

Often early

Orange-

crowned

Boreal forests

Often varies  yearly

Some females arrive on n. breeding grounds pregnant due to mating during migration

V.

ruficapilla

Nashville

Early

Often early

Variety

Stable?

Two distinct subspecies; one in both E & W USA

Parula

americana

No. Parula

Very early

Pro-

longed

Nashville

Varies

Stable?

Breeds high in trees, often using lichens or Spanish moss as nesting material

Mniotilta

varia

Black-and-white

Early

Very early

Blackpoll

Mature & 2nd Growth

Regional declines; cowbird par

Creeping foraging is often diagnostic; glean trunks/branches for larvae/insects

Setophaga

ruticilla

American Redstart

Often late

Pro-longed

Distinct’vappr’nce

Wet decid, mixed for.

Fewer: pts of range

Tame/curious; squeaks/”pishes” attract this warbler that acts like may act like flycatcher

Protonotaria

citrea

Prothonotary

Early

Very early exit

Yellow, Blue-winged

Bottom-land forests

Numbers down; On "Watch List"

Prefers dark, damp lowland woods, swamps; found in wet, shady areas; snags/stumps essential for nesting cavities; only E. USA cavity-nesting wood-warbler

Helmitheros

vermivorus

Worm-eating

Early

Swain-

son’s

Decid. or mixed woods

Numbers down; On "Watch List"

On migration, may feed higher in treetops than in breeding areas where it forages low, often in clusters of dead leaves; hops, doesn’t walk; usually uses ground for nest

Limnothlypis

swainsonii

Swainson’s

Worm-eating

Wet woods; cane sp.

Numbers down; On "Watch List"

Rare;wooded swamplands and canebrakes of SE lowlands and rhododendron thickets; Shy and reclusive; excellent place to see:

Dismal Swamp in SE Virgina

Seirus

aurocapillus

Ovenbird

Pro-

longed

N. & LA Waterthr.

Mature forests

Hurt by forest fragmenta-tion

Thrush-like warbler’s “teacher-teacher” song heard in deciduous/mixed forest of boreal E. No. Am; common name comes from domed ground nest (Dutch oven)

S.

motacilla

Louisiana

Waterthrush

Among earliest

Among earl., if not 1st

No. Waterth.

Fast flow./ rocky streams

No strong pop. trends

More SE breeding range than No. Water.; early spring arrival/fall departure; note white throat as a good field mark to distinguish from buffy-throated No. Water.

SCIENTIFIC NAME

Common Name

Spring

Arrival

Fall Depart.

Confused With?

Breed Habitat

Status

Comments

Oporornis

formosus

Kentucky

Common Yellowthroat

Deep decid. woods & fewer in mixed woods

Sensitive to fragment; on "Watch List"

Spends most of the time on or near ground; indicator of forest “health” because it uses lg. decid. forests, mostly in South/Mid-Atlantic

O.

agilis

Connecticut

Very late

Among latest to leave

Mourning

Varies

More numerous in 19th C.

May be latest arriving spring warbler in E.; secretive; walking gait is like ovenbird’s

O.

philadelphia

Mourning

Among latest arrivals

Often begins early

Mac-

gillivary’s

Boreal habs.; Dense 2nd growth