Black-throated Green Warbler

Black-throated Green Warbler, male; Dryden, Tompkins Co., NY; May.

About the photographs

About the map

Play sound from this species

Black-throated Green Warbler, female, with chicks at nest.

Menu

1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

An abundant breeder of the northeastern coniferous forests, the Black-throated Green Warbler is easy to recognize by sight and sound. Its dark black bib and bright yellow face are unique amongst Eastern birds, and its persistent song of "zoo-zee, zoo-zoo-zee" is easy to remember.

Description

• Small songbird.
• Black in throat, extending as stripes down sides of chest.
• Yellow face.
• Crown and back olive green.
• Two white wingbars.
• Belly white.

• Size: 11-12 cm (4-5 in)
• Wingspan: 17-20 cm (7-8 in)
• Weight: 7-11 g (0.25-0.39 ounces)

Sex Differences

Males have black chins, throats, and upper breasts; black extends from sides of breast into broad, bold streaks on sides. Female has whitish throat, with variable amounts of black along breast and flanks.

Sound

Song is a musical, buzzy "zee-zee-zee-zoo-zee" or "zoo-zee-zoo-zoo-zee." Call note is a sharp chip.

Conservation Status

Populations have been stable through the early 1990s. Logging of coniferous forests negatively affects Black-throated Green Warbler populations, but the species does also breed in second-growth coniferous forest.

Other Names

Paruline à gorge noire (French)
Verdín de pecho negro (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• The male Black-throated Green Warbler sings persistently during the breeding season. One individual was observed singing 466 songs in one hour.
• The male Black-throated Green Warbler tends to sing his "zee-zee-zee-zoo-zee" song near the middle of his territory, largely in the beginning of the breeding season to attract females. He sings the "zoo-zee-zoo-zoo-zee" song mostly around the territory's margins, to deter other males.

• A population of the Black-throated Green Warbler is confined to the coastal plain of Virginia and the Carolinas, 500 km (311 mi) east of, and 1,200 m (4000 feet) lower than, Appalachian birds. These slightly smaller birds are different enough to be considered a separate subspecies, and are found breeding in cypress swamps.

Sources used to construct this page:

Morse, D. H. 1993. Black-throated Green Warbler (Dendroica virens). In The Birds of North America, No. 55 (A. Poole, and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.