Common Yellowthroat

Overview

Common Yellowthroat: Small, skulking warbler with olive-yellow upperparts, bright yellow throat and breast, and pale gray belly. The head has a black mask with a thick white border above, black bill. Legs are pink. Slow weak flight, alternates periods of rapid wing beats with wings pulled to sides.

Range and Habitat

Common Yellowthroat: Breeds throughout Alaska, Canada, and the U.S. Spends winters in southern states and in the tropics. Preferred habitats include briers, damp brushy places, weeds, or grass along country roads or in agricultural lands; also found in cattails, bulrushes, sedges, and willows near streams, swamps, and marshes.

INTERESTING FACTS

One adult was found in the stomach of a largemouth bass.
The male Common Yellowthroat performs a special flight song, given as he rises high into the air on fluttering wings. When choosing a mate, females appear to prefer males with larger masks.
They are apparently monogamous within a breeding season and only infrequently will males be seen with two mates in their territory.
Females, however, show no fidelity to their mates and often attract other males with their calls.
A group of warblers has many collective nouns, including a "bouquet", "confusion", "fall", and "wrench" of warblers.

The Common Yellowthroat is a small species of warbler found throughout North America, from southern Canada to central Mexico. Southern populations are typically year-round residents, though northern populations will migrate to warmer climates in Mexico, southern Central America and the West Indies. This species prefers to breed in marshes and wetlands with dense, low vegetation. The Common Yellowthroat is less common in drier areas, and suffers from loss of its natural habitat. Its diet consists mostly of insects, which are either caught during flight or on the ground. The conservation rating for the Common Yellowthroat is Least Concern.