Yellow-throated Warbler

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Yellow-throated Warbler by Greg Schneider

Warblers

Yellow-throated WarblerSetophaga dominica

ORDER: Passeriformes
FAMILY: Parulidae

Basic Description

The well-named Yellow-throated Warbler shows off its bright yellow throat in the canopy of forests in the southeastern United States. It hops up branches, working its way high into the canopy probing for insects in crevices and clumps of pine needles, much like a Brown Creeper or Black-and-white Warbler. Unlike those birds, the Yellow-throated Warbler is gray above with a black triangle below its eye and a white eyebrow. It is also one of the few warblers that can be found during the winter in the U.S.

More ID Info

Year-roundBreedingMigrationNonbreeding

Range map provided by Birds of the World

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Find This Bird

The Yellow-throated Warbler is one warbler that will require craning your neck to see the top of the canopy, which could give you a case of warbler neck. They tend to stick to the tops of the trees, so you might only get a glimpse of their undersides; look for the bright white belly and slightly notched white tail. Watch for a small bird hopping and creeping up branches much like a Black-and-white Warbler or Brown Creeper. During migration and winter, they sometimes forage lower to the ground, which may give you an opportunity for a closer look.

Other Names

Reinita Gorjiamarilla (Spanish)
Paruline à gorge jaune (French)

Backyard Tips

Yellow-throated Warblers may only use bird feeders on occasion, but you can still provide habitat for them by landscaping with native trees and shrubs. Creating a bird-friendly backyard by growing native plants can provide excellent stopover habitat to support warblers as they migrate to and from the breeding grounds.

Cool Facts
- Many warblers migrate from South America to Canada each year, but Yellow-throated Warblers are almost homebodies by comparison. They nest farther south than most warblers, winter farther north, and are even year-round residents in parts of the southern U.S.
- In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Yellow-throated Warblers disappeared from the northern part of their range, but since 1940 they have been expanding northward. Isolated breeding populations have been found as far north as New York, Michigan, and southeastern Ontario, Canada.
- The oldest recorded Yellow-throated Warbler was a male at least 6 years and 10 months old when seen in Ohio in 2018. He was originally banded in Alabama in 2012.