Bird Guide

Cerulean Warbler vs Tropical Parula

Cerulean Warbler (Setophaga cerulea)

Cerulean Warbler

Setophaga cerulea

Tiny9 gForest

The cerulean warbler is one of the smallest Setophaga wood-warblers, about 11 cm (4.3 in) long, weighing 8–10 g (0.28–0.35 oz), and having a wingspan of 20 cm (7.9 in). Males are slightly larger than females, and older males tend to also be larger. Wing chord measures 62–66 mm (2.4–2.6 in), while the tail is 40.6–42.7 mm (1.60–1.68 in) long. The culmen, or upper edge of the beak, measures 9.5–9.8 mm (0.37–0.39 in) long, 3.5 mm (0.14 in) wide and 3.5 mm (0.14 in) height. The cerulean warbler is strongly sexually dichromatic.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Manuel cabrera · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: (c) Matt Schenck, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Matt Schenck · cc-by
Tropical Parula (Setophaga pitiayumi)

Tropical Parula

Setophaga pitiayumi

Tiny7 gForest

The tropical parula is about 11 cm (4.3 in) long and weighs 6.5 to 8.0 g (0.23 to 0.28 oz). Adult males of subspecies S. p. nigrilora have a mostly blue-gray head with black lores and a small black mask. Their upperparts are also mostly blue-gray with an olive mantle. Their wings are blue-gray with white tips on the greater and median coverts that show as two wing bars. Their tail is blue-gray with large white spots near the ends of the feathers. Their throat and underparts to the belly are yellow with a strong orange wash on the lower throat, upper breast, and flanks. Voice: Male tropical parulas sing; apparently females do not. In the northern subspecies they have two general song types, a "repeated series of relatively simple syllables, increasing in tempo and pitch, forming rising trill that usually ends with buzzy downslur" and "several simple and complex syllables arranged according to no readily discernible syntax".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Niels Krabbe · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Pablo Cauã da Silva Toledo · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

Learn this pair in BeakBrain

Photo and call practice, free in any browser.

Play BeakBrain

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Cerulean Warbler and Tropical Parula.