June 19, 2022 - Warblers - 2

The American Redstart is one of the birds in the warbler family that doesn’t have the word “warbler” in its name. The gray and white plumage with yellow highlights indicates this is a female. An adult male would have black and white feathers with orange highlights.

RedstartAmericanfemaleDunningLakeItascaCounty20220523

This looks like a female Redstart but it’s actually a first-year male. It takes two years for males to molt into their “Halloween” colors, but during their first spring, you can start to notice black flecks on the head and chest as seen in this bird.

RedstartAmericanmalefirstyearDunningLakeItascaCounty220220522

This is a Black-throated Green Warbler. The black throat is obvious. The top of the head and the back are olive green, which makes the rest of the name fit as well. This is another species that nests in our woods.

WarblerBlackthroatedGreenDunningLakeItascaCounty20220514

The song of the Black-throated Green Warbler is often described as sounding like “zee zee zee zoo zee.” I usually find them by listening for the song.

WarblerBlackthroatedGreensingingDunningLakeItascaCounty20220514

I’m getting a very inquisitive look from this bird! The extensive, very dark black throat patch tells me this is a male. A female might have some black on her throat, but it would be a very small, light patch.

WarblerBlackthroatedGreenDunningLakeItascaCounty20220514

All the previous photos were taken at our lake home in northern Minnesota, but this one was taken at our apartment in the Twin Cities area. This is a Yellow Warbler.

WarblerYellowWaverlyGardensNorthOaksRamseyCounty20220510