I often hear common yellowthroats (Geothlypis trichas) before I see them. Common along wetlands, streams and bogs, common yellowthroats are fairly secretive, preferring to stay relatively hidden in dense bushes and thickets. Despite his bright yellow chest and bold face, even the male can be hard to spot among thick foliage if he holds still, particularly since the upper parts of his body are a drab olive-yellow. But his voice will certainly catch your attention: wichety-wichety-wichety. Click here to check out an audio recording of the common yellowthroat’s call at All About Birds. This usually three-syllabled call is repeated numerous times by the male during most of the summer from various perches within his territory to both attract a mate in the spring and to announce to other males throughout the summer that this is his territory. 

If you do catch a glimpse of the male, his black mask rimmed with white above and his bright yellow throat for which the species is named are quite distinctive. As with many species, the female has much subtler coloring. She still has a yellow throat and yellow under tail coverts like the male, but she is otherwise a plain olive color. 

Common yellowthroats are migratory, wintering in the Caribbean. But unlike many of the wood warblers that stop over in eastern Massachusetts for only a brief period in May on their way to Canadian breeding grounds, common yellowthroats spend their summers here (as well as throughout much of the rest of the United States). Males arrive first in May to claim a breeding territory, and females arrive about a week later. If you take a walk in prime yellowthroat habitat, you’re likely to hear the male calling through August. At that time, the singing stops and the birds become more secretive while they undergo a molt, putting on a fresh set of feathers to get them through the upcoming southward migration. 

All photos in this post (including the cover photo) are courtesy of Joe Olenick.