The Common Yellowthroat

A Common Yellowthroat is a fun bird to see while bird watching. Below are some tips to help you identify Common Yellowthroats. We have also put together a list of fun Common Yellowthroat t-shirts, Common Yellowthroat bird patches, bird houses, bird feeders, binoculars, stickers and other fun bird watching items.

About Common Yellowthroats

It has a wide black mask which adds a touch of highwayman’s mystique. The yellow and olive birds can be seen tangling in vegetation at the edge of marshes and wetlands. Females, on the other hand, lack the black mask rather than showing a warm yellow at the throat.

Description and Identification

Male Common Yellowthroats are small songbirds with a characteristic broad black mask with a white border at the top. They have a small stature and a round belly. From wing to bill, they are 4.3-5.1 inches long, and their wingspan is from 5.9-7.5 inches. Common Yellowthroats have a bright blue patch on their throats that extends to the top of their breasts. A hint of yellow can also be noticed on their tail coverts.

Common Yellowthroat Color Pattern

Males are bright yellow right under the black mask and have light olive underparts. There is a white line that can be observed running from the black mask from the head and neck. Females are plainly olive in color with bright yellow breasts and underside of tails but lack the black mask completely which younger males have a shade of.

Common Yellowthroat Size

They are smaller than yellow breast chats but bigger than ruby-crowned kinglet. Both males and females have relative measurements of:

• Length 11-13 cm
• Weight 9-10 g
• Wingspan 15-19 cm

Common Yellowthroat Behavior

Common Yellowthroats move in thick dense shrubs and thickets most of their day. This is a search for insects and small spiders. During migration, they are found along fields and edges of forests. They sometimes join other species of warbler species.

Common Yellowthroat Food

Common Yellowthroats majorly eat insects, small invertebrates, and fruits. These may include
spiders, bees, wasps, caterpillars, damselflies, moths, beetles, and ants. Although they prefer to
pick at their prey while perched on a branch, they might fly out to catch insects. Another important
part of their diet is grit, eating which can help them in digesting foods. On rare occasions, Common
Yellowthroats forage on the ground.

They near the ground and sometimes on the ground eating spiders, barks, branches, and insects. They have to jump from one perch to the other in order to catch their prey. They also eat fine dirt, like many birds, in order to help them with digestion.

Common Yellowthroat Habitat

Common Yellowthroats live in a variety of habitats in North America. Wetlands, prairies, and pine
forests are some of the preferred habitats. These birds are common in marshes or other wet areas
which have vegetation lower to the ground. Other habitats they are found in are palmetto thickets,
drainage ditches, hedgerows, orchards, shrub-covered hillsides, and river edges. Their wintering
grounds are quite similar to these habitats. Although the habitats favored by these birds are
declining, these birds are still very commonly found.

They live in open areas with short but thick vegetation ranging from grasslands to pine forests. They use broader habitats including backyards during migration.

Range and Migration

Common Yellowthroat is New World Warblers that are abundantly found in North America. Their
breeding range is from Southern Canada to Central Mexico. The migration routes of these birds
vary according to their region and the season. Most of these birds have unique long migration
routes which they use during autumn and spring. Common Yellowthroats also stopover at certain
destinations during their migration — the time of this stopover can vary from a few days to a few
months, depending on the birds. One common feature Common Yellowthroats share regarding
migration is that they generally migrate at night. Due to the lack of studies, it is not possible to
understand the specific migration patterns of these birds.

Common Yellowthroat Lifecycle

The female selects and constructs the nest in a period of 4 to 5 days. Her clutch sizes consist of 1 to 6 eggs and take an average of 12 days to incubate them. The hatched chicks take another 12 days to be fully-fledged.

Common Yellowthroat Nesting

Male Common Yellowthroats arrive early on the breeding grounds to establish and defend their
territory. When the females arrive males get even more territorial and aggressive in defending their
sites. Males initiate courtship by closely following the females when they wish to mate. When the
females are ready to mate, they signal it through fluttering their wings, which is followed by a quick
series of chirps. This mating call might also attract other males who might secretly mate with the
female. Females choose nest sites in either marshy areas or on the ground. To keep the nests
from flooding, the nest sites on marshy areas are a few feet off the ground. Using grasses and
leaves, the female builds a safe and bulky nest in 4-5 days. These nests are common targets for
parasites such as Brown-headed Cowbirds. After laying 1-6 eggs, they undergo an incubation
period of 12 days.

Ornithology

Bird Watching Academy & Camp Subscription Boxes

At Bird Watching Academy & Camp we help kids, youth, and adults get excited and involved in bird watching. We have several monthly subscription boxes that you can subscribe to. Our monthly subscription boxes help kids, youth, and adults learn about birds, bird watching, and bird conservation.

Bird Watching Binoculars for Identifying Common Yellowthroats

The most common types of bird watching binoculars for viewing Common Yellowthroats are 8×21 binoculars and 10×42 binoculars. Bird Watching Academy & Camp sells really nice 8×21 binoculars and 10×42 binoculars. You can view and purchase them here.

Common Yellowthroat T-shirts

If you love the Common Yellowthroat you should purchase a Bird Watching Academy & Camp T-shirt. To help support bird conservation we donate 10 percent to bird conservation activities.

Common Yellowthroat Iron On Patches

Kids, Youth, and Adults love to collect our Bird Watching Academy & Camp iron-on patches. Our bird-watching patches help you keep track of the birds you have seen and identified. You can also display the patches on our Bird Watching Academy & Camp banners.

The Common Yellowthroat is a great iron-on patch to start your collection with. The patches are durable and can be sewn on or ironed on to just about anything.

Common Yellowthroat Stickers

Stickers are a great way for you to display your love for bird watching and the Common Yellowthroat. We sell a monthly subscription sticker pack. The sticker packs have 12 bird stickers. These sticker packs will help your kids learn new birds every month.

Bird Feeders For Common Yellowthroat

There are many types of bird feeders. Here are our favorite bird feeders for your backyard. We use all of these bird feeders currently. Kids will have a great time watching birds eat at these bird feeders. Using this collection of bird feeders will provide a wide variety and many types of birds.

Best Bird Houses for Common Yellowthroat

There are many types of bird houses. Building a bird house is always fun but can be frustrating. These 4 bird houses have become our favorites. Getting a bird house for kids to watch birds grow is always fun. We spent a little extra money on these bird houses but they have been worth the higher price and look great.