Hooded Warbler

Rare Birds in Grand Manan

Hooded Warbler [Mark Morse Photo]

Late summer and fall usually bring us a few rare bird species.  Those species are often seen along the coast and especially on Grand Manan.  The recent hurricane Dorian has brought some incredibly rare species to Nova Scotia and a few to New Brunswick.  The Hooded Warbler of today's post was seen on Grand Manan in late August (pre-hurricane) and represents one of the species that seem to get off-course in their southerly migrations. 

The Hooded Warbler (Setophaga citrina) is a startlingly beautiful warbler.  The male in spring sports a black hood which covers its throat, crown and nape.  The hood contrasts with the bright yellow face and forehead.  It has an olive-green back and rump and yellow underneath.  The legs are pink and it has white outer-tail feathers which it uses to 'flash' a potential predator.  The breeding-plumaged female is a paler version of the male with variable amounts of the hood.  

The Hooded Warbler prefers shady undergrowth in mature hardwood forests when it is in the north.  The species is unusual in that the two genders prefer different habitats on the wintering grounds.  The males prefer mature forests but the females prefer scrub land. The normal range of this species is the southeastern US in summer and southern Mexico and the West Indies in winter.  It is a super flier, migrating across the Gulf of Mexico to its wintering area.  

Hooded Warblers are late nesters.  That is a good strategy to avoid parasitism by cowbirds.  They build their nest low in a small tree or dense shrubbery.  The nest is made of dead leaves and plant fibres.  Three to five cream-coloured eggs with brown blotches are incubated for 12 days.  Their diet consists of insects and arthropods like most warblers.  

The male Hooded Warbler is so beautiful that it usually brings out exclamations from birders.  In 1907 Frank Chapman, an early renowned ornithologist, wrote about this species, "Its beauty of plumage, charm of voice, and gentleness of demeanour, make it indeed not only a lovely, but a lovable bird."  Its song is a whistle which repeats ta-wee and ends with tee-too.  Hooded Warblers do not breed in NB so we do not get to hear this 'lovable' bird.