Black-throated Blue Warbler
Encyclopedia
The Black-throated Blue Warbler, Setophaga caerulescens, is a small songbird
of the New World warbler
family.
Adult males have white underparts with black throat, face and flanks; the upperparts are deep blue; immature males are similar with upperparts more greenish. Females have olive-brown upperparts and light yellow underparts with darker wings and tail, a grey crown and a brown patch on the cheek. All birds have a small white wing patch which is not always visible, and a thin pointed bill. Like many warblers, this bird has colorful plumage during the spring and summer, but its fall plumage is drab and less distinctive. In the fall, it can still be identified from other similar warblers by its small white wing patch.
Their breeding habitat is located in the interior of deciduous
and mixed forests in eastern North America
. Their nests are open cups placed in thick shrubs. Their close to ground nesting sites make the Black Throated Blue Warbler a favoured species for the study of warbler behavior in the wild.
These birds migrate
to islands in the Caribbean
and Central America
. They defend their territory against other birds of the same species for both nesting and winter habitats. The Black-throated Blue Warbler is a very rare vagrant to western Europe
.
These birds forage actively in low vegetation, sometimes hovering or catching insects in flight. Blue-throated Black Warblers often forage in one area for a while before moving on to the next. These birds mainly eat insects, including caterpillar
s and crane flies
, and spiders. Seeds, berries and fruit may be added to their diets in winter.
The song of this bird is a buzzed zee-zee-zeeee with an upward inflection. The call is a flat ctuk.
As this bird requires large, unbroken forest areas for nesting, its numbers are declining.
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...
of the New World warbler
New World warbler
The New World warblers or wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds restricted to the New World. They are not related to the Old World warblers or the Australian warblers....
family.
Adult males have white underparts with black throat, face and flanks; the upperparts are deep blue; immature males are similar with upperparts more greenish. Females have olive-brown upperparts and light yellow underparts with darker wings and tail, a grey crown and a brown patch on the cheek. All birds have a small white wing patch which is not always visible, and a thin pointed bill. Like many warblers, this bird has colorful plumage during the spring and summer, but its fall plumage is drab and less distinctive. In the fall, it can still be identified from other similar warblers by its small white wing patch.
Their breeding habitat is located in the interior of deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
and mixed forests in eastern North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Their nests are open cups placed in thick shrubs. Their close to ground nesting sites make the Black Throated Blue Warbler a favoured species for the study of warbler behavior in the wild.
These birds migrate
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
to islands in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
. They defend their territory against other birds of the same species for both nesting and winter habitats. The Black-throated Blue Warbler is a very rare vagrant to western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
These birds forage actively in low vegetation, sometimes hovering or catching insects in flight. Blue-throated Black Warblers often forage in one area for a while before moving on to the next. These birds mainly eat insects, including caterpillar
Caterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
s and crane flies
Crane fly
A crane fly is an insect in the family Tipulidae. Adults are very slender, long-legged flies that may vary in length from though tropical species may exceed to ....
, and spiders. Seeds, berries and fruit may be added to their diets in winter.
The song of this bird is a buzzed zee-zee-zeeee with an upward inflection. The call is a flat ctuk.
As this bird requires large, unbroken forest areas for nesting, its numbers are declining.
External links
- Black-throated Blue Warbler Information - South Dakota Birds and Birding
- Black-throated Blue Warbler - Dendroica caerulescens - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
- Black-throated Blue Warbler Species Account - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Stamps
- Black-throated Blue Warbler videos on the Internet Bird Collection