Warbler

“ The indefatigable little warbler, or razor-grinder, is singing its sweet notes at nine o'clock p.p., by beautiful moonlight; it is a very fearless little bird, associating with all the farm and domestic animals, watching attentively for flies, at which it springs with unerring aim, twittering out every now and then, by way of interlude or for the sake of good digestion, some of its sweetest notes. ”

“ He who would make the acquaintance of the worm-eating warbler must seek it in its own chosen home, far from which it never strays. It is a bird of shaded hillside and dark thickets along watercourses. Though nimble in its movements and an active insect hunter, it is an unobtrusive little warbler, garbed in very modest colors, and is likely wholly, to escape the notice of the unobservant. ”

“ The female is merely more dull in coloration than the male, and the young even duller. The hybrids between this and the golden-winged warbler are more puzzling, but in a general way they can be recognized; a nearly typical blue-winged warbler with a black throat is probably a Lawrence’s warbler; and a golden-winged warbler without a black throat or cheek and with a variable amount of white and yellow on the under parts and in the wing-bars, is probably a Brewster’s warbler. But there is an immense amount of individual variation between the two species, due to frequent crossing. ”

“ This lively little warbler, with its nervous habit of tipping up its tail incessantly like a spotted sandpiper, resembles its near relative the yellow warbler in a few respects. The olive-green upper parts and yellow breast streaked with brown are points of resemblances, but the chestnut crown and yellow line over the eye are differences. Neither yellow warblers nor yellow palm warblers are dwellers in the woods, but prefer to live near the haunts of man. ”

“ To satisfy its appetite, which cannot but be dainty in so thoroughly charming a bird, it lives in low, boggy woods, in such retreats as Wilson's black-capped warbler selects for a like reason. Neither of these two "flycatcher" warblers depends altogether on catching insects on the wing; countless thousands are picked off the under sides of leaves and about the stems of twigs in true warbler fashion. ”

“ Next to the yellow warbler, this is probably the best known of the wood warblers and is about the second one of the group that the novice learns to recognize. All through the eastern United States this is by far the most abundant warbler on both migrations, being about the first to arrive in the spring and the last to leave in the fall, often remaining all winter nearly up to the southern limits of its breeding range. It is a large, conspicuous warbler, not at all shy, and is to be found almost anywhere, often in enormous numbers. ”

“ The position of the white marks on the tail feathers of this warbler, however, is the clue by which it may be identified at any season or any stage of its growth. If the white bar runs across the middle of the warbler's tail, you can be sure of the identity of the bird. A nervous and restless hunter, it nevertheless seems less shy than many of its kin. Another pleasing characteristic is that it brings back with it in October the loud, clear, rapid whistle with which it has entertained its nesting mate in the Canada woods through the summer. ”

“ Strange birds these, in appearance like thrushes, in their haunts and in their teetering motion like sandpipers, but in reality belonging to the same family as the tree-loving wood warblers. A problem not yet solved by ornithologists is: what was the mode of life of 95 the ancestor of the many warblers? Did he cling to and creep along the bark, as the black-and-white warbler, or feed from the ground or the thicket as does the worm-eating? Did he snatch flies on the wing as the necklaced Canadian warbler, or glean from the brook’s edge as our water thrush? ”

“ Among these early wandering birds the black-and-white warbler is a very conspicuous species, perhaps because it is one of our commoner birds or, more probably, because of its habit of feeding in plain sight on the trunks and low branches of dead or dying trees and shrubs instead of hiding, like other warblers, high up in the foliage. It may be that the warblers we see at some distance from their breeding grounds thus early in the season have already begun their migration toward the south: they often appear to be migrating. ”

“ Wherever there are birds at all, this bird is sure to be there. From the seacoast to the mountains, in city parks and gardens, in orchards and in chaparral, the Audubon’s warbler is equally at home. On any country walk scores are sure to be seen, starting up from the ground or out of the trees with wavering and erratic flight, showing in departure a flash of white-marked tail-feathers and a gleaming yellow rump spot, and uttering the incessant chip that, better than any marking, serves to identify the fleeting bird. ”

“ Voice.—Ernest Thompson Seton (1891) says of an orange-crowned warbler that he shot in Manitoba on May 12, 1883: “It was flitting about with great activity among the poplar catkins, and, from time to time, uttering a loud song like 'chip-e chip-e chip-e chip-e chip-e.' On May 141 shot another Orange-crowned Warbler. Its song is much like that of the Chipping Sparrow, but more musical and in a higher key. The bird is extremely restless and lively, moving about continually among the topmost twigs of the trees and uttering its little ditty about once in every half minute.” ”

“ Although a number of wood warblers which winter in the Central American highlands are gregarious, those that center in the lowlands are typically solitary. In this, the yellow warbler is no exception. Each wintering bird appears to have its own territory, from which it attempts to drive others of its kind. Trespassers are scolded with insistent chips; or more rarely, soon after his arrival, a male will sing while defending his claim. ”

“ Field marks.—The golden-cheeked warbler might at first glance be mistaken for a black-throated green warbler, but the upper parts in the adult male are deep black from crown to tail, instead of olive-green, and the under parts, except for the black throat, are white and not tinged with yellow. ”

“ Though distinctively a warbler and not a creeper, the pine warbler is more deliberate in its motions than most of its kind and, somewhat in the manner of the creeper, moves among the branches or over the trunks in search of its insect food. For a warbler it is an early migrant and reaches the latitude of Massachusetts soon after the middle of April. ”

“ Field marks.—The gray back, white breast with a few black streaks, two white wing bars, and, particularly, the conspicuous black and white pattern of the head and throat will make this warbler almost unmistakable. The tiny yellow spot in front of the eye is visible only at close quarters. Young birds and adults in the fall show the same characters more or less obscured by brownish edgings. The female has a white throat instead of a black one. ”

“ While feeding, these warblers often gather into groups of a dozen or twenty individuals, and may be associated with other species, thus forming a considerable company. The warbler student is familiar with the waves of warblers and other small birds which range through the woods, now appearing in a bewildering flutter of a hundred wings, now disappearing in their eager quest for a lunch of insects. ”

“ I don't believe there is anybody living who could name at sight every one of the seventy warblers that visit the United States. Some are very gaily coloured and exquisitely marked, as birds coming to us from the tropics have a right to be. Some are quietly clad; some, like the redstart, are dressed quite differently from their mates and young; others, like the yellow warbler, are so nearly alike that you could see no difference between the male and female from the distance of a few feet. ”

“ A transient often displays a marked preference for certain types of trees, but it appears unusual for a single tree among many of the same kind to retain yearly so marked an attraction for a particular bird species.”
The migrating parula warbler is often seen in roadside trees and in shade trees in parks and gardens. It even visits our orchards, where one of the most charming sights of springtime is to see this gay-colored, tiny warbler flitting about in search of insects among the apple blossoms, a delightful bit of color contrast in a beautiful setting. ”

“ The adult winter plumage “differs chiefly from first winter dress in possessing a larger, more distinct crown patch,” in the male, and more or less of it in the female. “The color below is uniform and paler.”
Food.—Nothing seems to be known about the summer food of the orange-crowned warbler, but it probably does not differ greatly from that of the lutescent warbler, whose food has been more thoroughly studied. In winter, it probably eats a fair proportion of berries and other fruits, especially when it spends the winter somewhat farther north than insects are to be found in abundance. ”

“ It has been seen foraging on the ground, as well as in the foliage, and flying up into the air to capture insects on the wing.
Behavior.—Virginia’s warbler is a shy, retiring species, spending most of its time not far above the ground in the thick underbrush, where it is not easily seen, as its colors match its surroundings. It is also very lively and active, almost constantly in motion, except when it mounts to the top of some dead bush or small tree to sit and sing. ”

“ When disturbed or alarmed they are at once alert; a sharp alarm note, something like that of a Yellow-throated Warbler (D. dominica) is uttered, but more forcible and clear cut in its delivery. This is accompanied with a few jerks of the tail, and the bird is off to a neighboring tree. They are found alike in the trees, low bushes, and shrubbery, sometimes on or quite near the ground, and seem to prefer the heavy and more thickly grown woods to trees or bushes more in the open. ”

“ He is the only warbler we have in eastern North America that makes a habit of scaling the tree trunks and descending them head downward. How does he do this? The muscles of his legs and pelvis are as elastic as India rubber, so that he can twist and twirl about in a marvelous way, pointing his head one moment to the east and the next, without losing his hold, in the opposite direction. He is able to swing himself around almost as if he were hung on a pivot. ”

“ Behavior.—Audubon’s warbler is a lively and active bird that seems to be always in a hurry, constantly moving in pursuit of its prey. Mrs. Bailey (1902) writes:
Its flight and all its movements seem to be regulated by gnats, its days one continuous hunt for dinner. When insects are scarce it will fly hesitatingly through the air looking this way and that, its yellow rump spot always in evidence, but when it comes to an invisible gauzy-winged throng it zigzags through, snapping them up as it goes ”

“ Moreover, the ovenbird is distinctly spotted on the breast, whereas the warbler has a plain, unmarked breast and no conspicuous wing bars. Except for the bold stripes on the head it is just a plain olive and buffy warbler in all plumages.
Enemies.—Says Burns (1905) : “This Warbler’s enemies are wood-mice, red squirrels and hunting dogs; the latter will sometimes push up and overturn the nest; an occasional weasel or blacksnake may [45] destroy a few young. ”

“ American Warblers.—These gems of the woodland and of wayside thickets abound throughout the length and breadth of our country. During the migrations they are generally distributed, it not being uncommon, then, to find even the Blackburnian warbler, which, during the nesting season, is pre-eminently a bird of the deep woods, feeding in the open fields, while I have taken the Cape May warbler, which occurs in summer in the thick evergreens of the north, feeding among the oranges and bananas in the gardens of Key West. ”

“ Like most of the same sex of other Warblers, the female of this species is very shy, and seldom noticed except when an intruder disturbs the nest or when feeding the young after leaving it, but the male Golden-cheeked Warbler is by no means a shy bird. He keeps continually flying from tree to tree in search of insects, and on fine days uttering his song at short intervals from early dawn until after sundown, and before nest building begins shows little alarm upon being approached. ”

“ When the birds returned in migration the next spring, I hunted high and low for my tame warbler but did not find him. The warblers that nest along the old road are quite tame for wild birds. They will come within four feet of an observer. They have attracted the attention - 264 - of visitors by this trait. I think many of these tame birds are the descendants of my little bird friend that for sixteen years has consecrated my cabin dooryard. ”

“ When started, the warbler flies noiselessly to the nearest shaded perch, and there sits motionless, watching the intruder, till it decides either to renew its interrupted search for food or to seek some distant place, far from the danger of intrusion. ”

“ The individual warbler, attached to a flock of kinglets, let us say, may be the more surely guided to available food. Then, too, differences in alertness of the two or more species concerned may afford greater protection to each than would be the case if they remained separate. ”

“ I have often watched these warblers feeding in my yard and have seen them take small, active caterpillars on numerous occasions. There seems little doubt that scale insects are often taken, as the yellow-throated warbler, creeping about the limbs of trees as it does, undoubtedly finds many of these tiny, but destructive pests. There can be little question as to its benefit to agriculture.
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Behavior.—There is much that is reminiscent of the brown creeper in the habits of the yellow-throated warbler. ”