Blue-winged Warbler
Blue-winged Warbler Information
Length: 4.5 - 5"
Breeding Habitat: Nests at forest edges, in forest clearings, at edges of wetlands, and in overgrown pastures. Strong preference for habitat that includes dense, shrubby growth or dense thickets.
Diet: Insects, especially caterpillars, beetles, ants, crickets, and grasshoppers; spiders.
Songs and calls of the Blue-winged Warbler
Additional Information
Blue-winged WarblerHabitat, diet, feeding behavior, nesting, migration, and conservation status of this bird. Includes range map, photos, and songs and calls. (From Audubon Field Guide)
Blue-winged Warbler
By Wolfgang Wander [CC SA 3.0]
Blue-winged Warbler
Identification Tips
- Small, active, insect-eating bird
- Thin, very pointed bill
- Yellow head and underparts
- White undertail coverts
- Black eyeline
- Olive nape and back
- Blue-gray wings with two white wing bars
- Pinkish legs
- Females and immatures have paler yellow heads and breasts
The yellow, unstreaked head and underparts and the black eyeline identify the Blue-winged Warbler.
The Blue-winged Warbler occasionally hybridizes with the Golden-winged Warbler to produce offspring with characteristics of both parents. Some have mostly white underparts (Brewster's Warbler), while some have the yellow plumage of the Blue-winged but the dark throat of the Golden-winged (Lawrence's Warbler).
(Credit: U. S. Geological Survey)
Breeding Bird Survey Map,
2011-2015
(Image credit: USGS)
Range in New England
In New England, the Blue-winged Warbler's main breeding areas are southern Vermont and the Champlain valley, southern New Hampshire, the southmost portion of Maine, as well as the states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
This warbler winters in Central America and parts of Mexico.
Breeding Map from eBird
Sightings of the Blue-winged Warbler from
May-June over past 10 years
(2009-2019)