Orange-crowned warbler (Leiothlypis celata)
With millions of migrating birds arriving in and/or passing through Oregon this week, it seems fitting that this week’s crawly is of the feathered variety. Meet the orange-crowned warbler (Leiothlypis celata).
Here’s how Cornell’s All About Birds describes the orange-crowned, “Orange-crowned Warblers aren’t the most dazzling birds in their family, but they’re a useful one to learn. These grayish to olive-green birds vary in color geographically and have few bold markings. There’s rarely any sign of an orange crown, which is usually only visible when the bird is excited and raises its head feathers.”
The best way to identify an orange-crowned warbler is – nope – not the orange crown. You almost never see the orange crown. Cornell isn’t exaggerating. Scroll through hundreds of photos of orange-crowned warblers in the Macaulay Library online and you’ll notice that seeing the orange-crown on an orange-crowned warbler is right up there with Sasquatch sightings.
How plain are they? Orange-crowned are so plain their Genus name Leiothlypis, means “plain warbler.” They should speak to a manager about that.
Fun fact: Despite the fact that you may never in your lifetime see the orange crown of an orange-crowned warbler, both male and female orange-crowned sport the well-hidden POP of color patch of feathers.
So, the actual best way to ID an orange-crowned warbler is their stunning lack of any identifying features.
We have a few similar looking warblers here in Oregon, such as the Nashville warbler which sometimes sports a bit of a red crown. However, they also have a very bright white eye ring and a distinct “grey on top, yellow on the bottom” head and body.
The Tennessee warbler is quite similar to the orange-crowned, but with a clean pale eyebrow and easy to ID dark line through their eye. Also Tennessee warblers are very uncommon in Oregon (being from Tennessee and all).
When it comes to orange-crowned they are one of the few warbler species that are more abundant in the West than in the East. They may not be fancy, but we sure have a lot of them!
They are fun to observe because like Wilson’s warblers (and UNlike 99.9% of all other warblers) they often forage quite close to the ground while most warblers prefer life in the tip-tops of trees and we grow our trees tall here.
Not only do orange-crowned frequently forage at eye-level, but they are also unique in that they are ground nesting birds as well. Most likely they nest low to avoid nest-robbing birds. A small population of California orange-crowned nest in tall shrubs and trees because their small area has few to no nest bandits.
Orange-crowned winter farther north than most other warbler species and can be found in our area year-round.
As the name implies, male orange-crowned warblers do warble a tune. While they may be a bit nondescript in the looks department, they are awesome singers. Orange-crowned’s song is far more variable than the songs of other wood warblers. Their individual tunes are so distinct – while still being distinctly orange-crowned – it’s possible to tell one male from another by their song.
They must know they kick song-tush because males often form choirs. During breeding season groups of two to six males in adjacent territories will learn and mimic each other’s songs. These singing groups can carry on for years.
So be on the look out in the shrubbery this spring and summer for a gray to yellow otherwise “plain” bird zipping about searching for a tasty aphid or 20 or 200 to munch on, and if you happen to see that fiery crown – buy a lotto ticket; it’s your lucky day!