Blackpoll Warbler

Quick Take

• This tiny songbird pulls off one of the most physically demanding feats in the animal kingdom. It does so nonstop, over open ocean. See the nonstop flight →
• Its fall and spring migration routes are not the same, a difference whose reason reveals something unexpected about how this bird navigates. Explore the two routes →
• Spotting one in the wild comes down to timing, and birdwatchers who show up in the wrong season will miss a key visual cue that makes identification easy. Spot seasonal differences →
• Despite a population in the tens of millions, this warbler carries a conservation warning that most people would find surprising. Check the conservation status →

A Blackpoll Warbler is a songbird. It is an insectivore, eating mosquitoes, spiders, caterpillars, and other insects, and occasionally supplementing its diet with berries and fruit. It lives in an evergreen forest habitat. One of the most interesting facts about this bird is that it travels nonstop on a migration route that proceeds over water.

4 Incredible Blackpoll Warbler Facts

• The wingspan of this bird reaches up to ten inches.
• Male birds have an especially high-pitched song.
• It makes a cup-shaped nest out of spruce twigs, lichen, and hair.
• This bird is smaller than a sparrow.

Where to Find the Blackpoll Warbler

Blackpoll warblers live in North America, specifically Canada. Their fall migration route takes them on a remarkable transoceanic journey, departing from the northeastern United States and Nova Scotia and flying nonstop over the Atlantic Ocean to reach the northern part of South America, while their spring return route passes back through the eastern United States. Though the climate is temperate and rainy in some areas of Canada, the habitat there is too cold for these songbirds in the wintertime.

Birdwatchers interested in seeing the blackpoll warbler are most likely to see them during the spring and fall seasons. Their migration route covers the eastern part of the United States. People can see them in the spring as they head north from South America back to Canada. Alternatively, birdwatchers can see them in the fall as they head south again for the winter. They don’t travel the same migration route for both seasons.

Blackpoll warblers are sometimes heard before they are seen and are known to sing much more in the spring than in the fall. Additionally, the colors of the male are more distinct in the springtime. This makes them easier to spot in their habitat.

Nests

Female Blackpoll Warblers typically build their nests in fir or spruce trees, close to the trunk. Some of these songbirds build their nest less than a foot above the ground, while others build theirs thirty feet up. The nest is shaped like a cup, with an exterior made of lichen and twigs. The inside of the nest is constructed out of hair or grass. Construction of the nest takes three to four days.

Classification and Scientific Name

The scientific name for this songbird is Setophaga striata. The word Setophaga refers to the genus of this bird, while the Latin word striata translates to striped. A blackpoll warbler has a striped pattern on its wings. It is in the Parulidae family and the Aves class.

Size, Appearance, & Behavior

The differences in the colors of male and female blackpoll warblers make identification fairly easy. The male blackpoll warbler is named for the cap of black feathers on its head. It has a white breast and black and white stripes on its wings. A female has brown and white streaks on her head. Looking closely, you’ll notice a yellowish tinge to the feathers on her head and breast. A female blackpoll warbler’s wings have black-and-white or brown-and-white stripes. The female has muted colors, whereas the male’s colors are bold.

This songbird is small, measuring no more than five and a half inches in length. It weighs from 0.4 to 0.5 ounces. The wingspan of this bird is eight to nine inches. One of the most notable identification features is that this songbird has orange-yellow feet.

Migration Pattern and Timing

In fall, blackpoll warblers migrate south from Canada to South America. Their fall migration route runs south from Canada, over the eastern United States and the Atlantic Ocean, to the northern part of South America. Many of these tiny songbirds travel nonstop for 72 hours or more on their journey south. These birds travel north in the spring to breed in various parts of Canada. However, their migration route in the spring is not the same as the route they use in the fall.

Diet

This songbird is an insectivore. It forages on the leaves in the tops of evergreen and deciduous trees.

What Does a Blackpoll Warbler Eat?

The diet of this bird includes spiders, beetles, mosquitoes, ants, and fruit. They increase their food intake just before beginning their southward journey in the fall.

Predators, Threats, and Conservation Status

These small songbirds have several predators. Other animals prey on adult blackpoll warblers as well as their eggs and chicks.

What eats Blackpoll Warblers?

Hawks, owls, snakes, and cats eat adult blackpoll warblers. Blue jays are known to prey on the chicks and eggs of these songbirds.

As of the most recent IUCN assessment (2018), these birds are categorized as Near Threatened. Their numbers are declining due to habitat loss, as they are slowly losing their breeding grounds in forests and shrublands.

Reproduction, Young, and Molting

In the spring, these birds lay from three to five white or pale green eggs with brown spots. The incubation period is 11 to 12 days. The chicks begin molting at around 10 days old. These young birds usually leave the nest at 11 or 12 days old, before the molting process is finished.

Some blackpoll warblers have two clutches of eggs each spring.

Warbler Population

According to IUCN (2018), this bird’s conservation status is Near Threatened. Their population is 59,000,000 mature adults, though it’s reportedly in decline.