Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)
 The yellow-rumped warbler is a mid-sized warbler found in North and Central America. They get their name from the bright yellow rump patch that is located at the base of the tail. This patch has also the reason for their nickname, "Butter Butt". They also have yellow on their heads and yellow patches on their sides. Males are usually a striking contrast of black and white, while females tend to be more brown.
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)
Yellow-rumps are expert foragers. They primarily eat insects which they glean from trees, males typically foraging higher in the trees then females. They will also catch insects on the wing, flying out from the branches that they have been gleaning from like a flycatcher. When there are no insects around yellow-rums will eat seeds and berries. They are the only species of warbler that can digest bayberries and wax myrtles. Because of this they are able to winter further north then other warbler species. Which is why they are usually the first warbler species that we see in spring and the last to leave in the fall.
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon) 
There are four different variations of yellow-rumped warblers. Two of the forms are non-migratory. They are the Black-fronted, from north western Mexico, and the Goldman's from Guatemala. The other two forms are migratory. They are the Myrtle (top 2 photos), which breed in eastern Canada and parts of the northern United States, and the Audubon (last photo) Which breed in western Canada, Alaska, the Pacific Coast, and Rocky Mountains. Both forms winter in the southern United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.


9 comments:

Neil said...

Beautiful looking bird. Happy New Year.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Hi Jeff That is a lovely welled named bird. HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Gemma Wiseman said...

The chirping warbler photo is ultra cute but I do love the feather detail in the first photo.

Dave said...

Lovely images of a smart bird

Happy 2014

Richard Lawry said...

I look forward to your blog posts. I love nature and birding in particular. I know from experience how difficult it is to get great bird photos, so I am always amazed by the quality of your photos. Happy New Year from An Arkie's Musings

Amazing wonders in my life said...

Beautiful shot

HansHB said...

Awesome post for WBW!
Happy New Year to you!

Louisette said...

Wonderfull bird and shot.
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Roger Owen Green said...

Once again, a species Ive never heard of! Excellent.

Happy New Year!
ROG, ABC Wednesday team