Virginia's Warbler Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  Virginia's Warblers are small birds with thin, pointy bills. The tail is long and relatively thin compared to many other warblers.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, smaller than a Plumbeous Vireo.

  sparrow-sized or smaller

  Measurements

  • Male
  • • Length: 4.1-4.7 in (10.4-12 cm)
    • Weight: 0.2-0.3 oz (6.5-10 g)
    • Wingspan: 7.5 in (19 cm)
  • Female
  • • Length: 4.0-4.7 in (10.1-12 cm)
    • Weight: 0.2-0.4 oz (6-10.5 g)

• Color Pattern

  Virginia's Warblers are gray with yellow highlights on the chest and under the rump (i.e., the undertail coverts). The amount of yellow on the chest varies from bright on males to pale or nonexistent on females and young birds. A vivid white eyering marks the plain gray face. Males and sometimes females have a small chestnut patch on the crown that is usually hidden.

• Behavior

  Virginia's Warblers hop from branch to branch, frequently wag their tails up and down. They tend to be unobtrusive, foraging at middle levels in pinyon-juniper and oak woodlands.

• Habitat

  Virginia's Warblers breed in open pinyon-juniper and oak woodlands in the southwestern Rocky Mountain states, often settling in areas with scrubby drainages and steep slopes.