Townsend's Warbler

Dendroica townsendiOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Wood Warblers (Parulidae)

General

Townsend's Warbler: Small warbler with black-spotted, olive green upperparts and black throat and upper breast. Lower breast and sides are yellow with heavy black streaks, and belly is white. Head has bright yellow face, black crown and cheek patch, and white crescent below eye. Wings are dark with two white bars. Tail has thick white edges and dark center and tip. Female and juvenile are duller with yellow throats and black-spotted, yellow upper breasts.

Range and Habitat

Townsend's Warbler: Breeds from Alaska and British Columbia to northern Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. Spends winters from southwestern California southward. Preferred habitats include coniferous forests, especially old stands of Douglas firs.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"zwee-zwee-zwee", "tew", "eek", "whee"

Interesting Facts

The male Townsend's Warbler begins to sing before it leaves its wintering grounds.

They are closely related to the Hermit Warbler, and the two species interbreed where their ranges overlap.

This bird was named after the American ornithologist, John Kirk Townsend.

A group of warblers has many collective nouns, including a "bouquet", "confusion", "fall", and "wrench" of warblers.

Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Townsend's Warbler

Townsend's Warbler: Olive-green upperparts, black throat and upper breast. Lower breast and sides are yellow with black streaks and belly is white.Face is yellow with black crown and cheek patch and yellow crescent below eye. Wings have two white bars. Tail has white edges, dark center and tip.

● Song: "zwee-zwee-zwee", "tew", "eek", "whee"

● Foraging & Feeding: Townsend's Warbler: Diet consists of insects and spiders; forages by gleaning prey from clumps of leaves while perched or hovering; occasionally catches flying insects in mid-air.

● Breeding & nesting: Townsend's Warbler: Three to five white eggs, with small brown spots, are laid in a well-concealed shallow cup nest, usually in a conifer. Eggs are incubated for 12 days by the female.

● Similar species: Townsend's Warbler: Black-throated Green Warbler has yellow cheeks and face without dark ear patches. Hermit Warbler lacks black cheeks and crown.

Flight Pattern

Weak flight on rapidly beating wings.

● Range & Habitat: Townsend's Warbler: Breeds from Alaska and British Columbia to northern Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. Spends winters from southwestern California southward. Preferred habitats include coniferous forests, especially old stands of Douglas firs.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationFairly common in coniferous range

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight0.3 Ounces

Field Guide to Birds of North America