Hermit Warbler

Hermit Warbler
Credit: Channel City Camera Club

Hermit Warblers are small, cute warblers because of their bright, yellow heads. Males have black throats, females have less-defined black throats, and juveniles have gray throats.

They all have grayish-white chests and bellies, two white wingbars, and gray backs. Males have additional streaking on their flanks, while females and juveniles don’t have them. 

  • Setophaga occidentalis
  • Length: 5 inches (13 cm)
  • Weight: 0.3 oz (9 g)
  • Wingspan: 7.75 inches (20 cm)

Range

Hermit Warblers breed on the West Coast and can be seen migrating to Mexico and Central America.

Habitat And Diet

You can find Hermit Warblers among the high pine, douglas-fir, spruce, and coniferous trees. In winter, they move to pine-oak forests. 

Like other warblers, Hermit Warblers also prefer to stay high up in the trees feasting on insects and spiders. They have the ability to hang upside down from branches in order to probe under the leaves for larvae and pupae. 

Hermit Warblers’ Song:

Nests

Nests of the Hermit Warblers are also high up in the trees. They are usually made of stems, grass, twigs, and pine needles. Females lay from three to five eggs and incubate them probably for about twelve days. 

Fun Fact:

Hermit Warblers hybridize with Townsend’s Warblers and female Hermit Warblers seem to prefer to mate with male Townsend’s Warblers but not the other way around.