Blue-winged Warbler Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesBlue-winged Warbler
Adult male
Small warbler with a small, pointed black bill. Adult males have two obvious wingbars and a black eyeline.
© Daniel Irons / Macaulay LibraryMaryland, September 03, 2017Adult female
Females are often paler than males with a grayer eyeline and a more olive crown, but some are not separable from males.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryNew York, May 19, 2016Adult male
Song consists of a thin, high buzz followed by a trill; a beee-buzz as if the bird was inhaling and then exhaling.
© Eric Liner / Macaulay LibraryNew York, June 01, 2009Not all videos have sound
Immature
Small songbird with a thin, pointed bill. Immature birds have a pinkish bill, yellow undertail coverts, and very thin (almost invisible) wingbars.
© Jeremy Collison / Macaulay LibraryNew York, August 04, 2016Adult male
Males are bright yellow below with a thin black eyeline.
© Luke Seitz / Macaulay LibraryNew York, May 16, 2018Female
Females pull off strips of bark from vines and other shrubs to build a cup-shapped nest.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 27, 1997Not all videos have sound
Adult male
Males are bright yellow below with white undertail coverts. The wings are steely blue-gray with 2 prominent wingbars. Note thin black eyeline.
© Rex Bartlett / Macaulay LibraryOntario, May 19, 2016Adult male
Picks insects off foliage often while hanging upside down. Note white undertail coverts.
© David M. Bell / Macaulay LibraryOntario, May 08, 2013Adult male
Males sing a beee-buzz from exposed perches; inhaling on the beee and exhaling on the buzz.
© Eric Liner / Macaulay LibraryNew York, June 01, 2009Not all videos have sound
Adult
Often forages at the outer edges of branches where it takes insects from vegetation. Some individuals cannot be accurately sexed.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryNew York, May 19, 2016Adult male
Found in areas with shrubby undergrowth.
© Elista Fisher / Macaulay LibraryWisconsin, May 09, 2017Female
Females nest on or near the ground and sit tight on the eggs for 11–12 days.
© Kevin Fraser / Macaulay LibraryNot all videos have sound
Similar SpeciesGolden-winged Warbler
Male
Male Golden-winged Warblers have a black (not yellow) throat and a yellow wing patch that Blue-winged Warblers lack.
© Luke Seitz / Macaulay LibraryNew York, May 19, 2018Similar SpeciesGolden-winged Warbler
Female
Female Golden-winged Warblers are whitish below (not yellow) and have a yellow wing patch that Blue-winged Warblers lack.
© Sylvain Messier / Macaulay LibraryQuebec, May 18, 2019Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
Don't miss a thing! Join our email list
The Cornell Lab will send you updates about birds,
birding, and opportunities to help bird conservation.