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Blackburnian Warbler

Dendroica fuscaOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Wood Warblers (Parulidae)

Blackburnian Warbler Breeding Male Portrait
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General

Blackburnian Warbler: Medium-sized warbler with yellow-orange head, black cap and cheek patch, and brilliant orange throat. Upperparts are black with white stripes and underparts are white with black- streaked flanks. Wings have prominent white patches. Tail is black with white on outer tail feathers. Female, winter adult and juvenile have duller orange on throat and white wing-bars instead of patches.

Range and Habitat

Blackburnian Warbler: Breeds from Saskatchewan east to Nova Scotia, south to the Great Lakes, southern New England, and in mountains to northern Georgia. Spends winters in the tropics. Preferred habitats include mixed forests of hemlock, spruce, and various hardwoods.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"sleet-sleet-sleet-sleet-sleetee-sleeeeeee"

Interesting Facts

  • The Blackburnian Warbler was named after Anna Blackburne, an English botanist. No other North American warbler has an orange throat.
  • They feed and nest in the upper and outer portions of coniferous trees, perhaps to avoid competition with other closely-related species. Hemlocks are a favorite.
  • Nests are placed high in those same trees, up to 85 feet above ground, hidden in dense foliage or in Usnea lichen. Perhaps because nests are so high, it is an uncommon victim of Brown-headed Cowbird parasitism.
  • 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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Range Map for Blackburnian Warbler
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Family
Species Dendroica fusca
Length5 Inches
Wingspan8 Inches

Blackburnian Warbler

Blackburnian Warbler: Medium warbler, yellow-orange head, black cap and cheek patch, and orange throat. Upperparts are black with white stripes and underparts are white with black- streaked flanks. Wings have prominent white patches. The tail is black with white on outer tail feathers.

● Song: "sleet-sleet-sleet-sleet-sleetee-sleeeeeee"

● Foraging & Feeding: Blackburnian Warbler: Eats caterpillars and beetles, hopping from limb to limb high in tall trees. Also hawks insects, flying from a perch to grab them in mid-air.

● Breeding & nesting: Blackburnian Warbler: Four to five brown spotted and blotched, white or pale green eggs are laid in a twig nest lined with lichens, mosses, and hair, usually built high in a large conifer. Incubation ranges from 11 to 12 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Blackburnian Warbler: Fall Black-throated Green Warbler is similar but has green cheeks and crown that do not contrast much with yellow behind eye. Townsend's Warbler has a more striking face pattern with darker cheeks and crown.

Flight Pattern

Swift direct flight with rapid wing beats.
Blackburnian Warbler Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Blackburnian Warbler: Breeds from Saskatchewan east to Nova Scotia, south to the Great Lakes, southern New England, and in mountains to northern Georgia. Spends winters in the tropics. Preferred habitats include mixed forests of hemlock, spruce, and various hardwoods.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
PopulationFairly common in coniferous range
MigrationMigratory
Weight0.4 Ounces