Chestnut-sided Warbler

Setophaga pensylvanica

New World Warblers · Passeriformes · Common

The Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica) is a common new world warbler found in 30 countries, weighing about 9 g. The chestnut-sided warbler is a New World warbler.

Least ConcernCommonEats invertebratesforestcup nest9 g

About the Chestnut-sided Warbler

The chestnut-sided warbler is a New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America and in southern Canada westwards to the Canadian Prairies. They also breed in the Great Lakes region and in the eastern United States.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

How to identify it

This species is a moderately-sized New World warbler. Despite having very different plumage, it is thought to be closely related to the widespread yellow warbler. In total, this species measures from 10 to 14 cm (3.9 to 5.5 in) in length and spans 16 to 21 cm (6.3 to 8.3 in) across the wings. Body weight ranges from 8 to 13.1 g (0.28 to 0.46 oz). Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 5.7 to 6.8 cm (2.2 to 2.7 in), the tail is 4.2 to 5.8 cm (1.7 to 2.3 in), the bill is 0.9 to 1 cm (0.35 to 0.39 in) and the tarsus is 1.7 to 1.9 cm (0.67 to 0.75 in). Voice: The songs are high whistled lines often described as pleased, pleased, pleased to MEECHA. This accented song is used primarily to attract a female and decrease in frequency once nesting is well under way. Males also sing unaccented songs (without the MEECHA at the end) and these are used mostly in territory defense and aggressive encounters with other males.

What the Chestnut-sided Warbler sounds like

Recording: Jonathon Jongsma · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto
Recording: Jonathon Jongsma · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto
Recording: steve · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

Where it lives

Recorded as a rare visitor in St. Martin.

When to see it

Best months: May, June, July, August, September, with peak activity in May. It is a summer visitor species across most of its range.

Easily confused with

Quick questions

How do you identify a Chestnut-sided Warbler?
This species is a moderately-sized New World warbler. Full identification notes are on this page.
How big is a Chestnut-sided Warbler?
The Chestnut-sided Warbler is a tiny sized bird weighing about 9 g.
Where can you see a Chestnut-sided Warbler?
The Chestnut-sided Warbler occurs in 30 countries, including the United States, Canada, Costa Rica, Panama and Belize.
What does a Chestnut-sided Warbler sound like?
You can listen to 3 field recordings of the Chestnut-sided Warbler on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
What birds look similar to a Chestnut-sided Warbler?
The Chestnut-sided Warbler is most easily confused with the Magnolia Warbler, the Black-throated Green Warbler and the Blackburnian Warbler.
Is the Chestnut-sided Warbler endangered?
The Chestnut-sided Warbler is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Learn the Chestnut-sided Warbler for real

BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.

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