ABACO’S 5 ‘PERMANENT RESIDENT’ WARBLERS & A NEW WARBLER ID GUIDE

Olive-capped Warbler, Abaco

ABACO’S 5 ‘PERMANENT RESIDENT’ WARBLERS & A NEW WARBLER ID GUIDE

There are 37 Warbler species (Parulidae) recorded for Abaco. There is considerable scope for confusion between many of them. For a start, by no means all have the helpful word ‘warbler’ in their name. Secondly a great many of the species are to a greater or lesser extent yellow, with sub-variables for gender, age and season. It’s easy to get in muddle. A good place to start ID is with the warblers that are on Abaco all year round. Only 5 species are permanent residents on Abaco and the Cays: Bahama Warbler, Bahama Yellowthroat, Olive-capped Warbler, Pine warbler and Yellow Warbler. I have used images of these to illustrate this post.

Yellow Warbler (f) Abaco

The rest are mostly winter residents, with some being transient visitors passing through on their migration routes. Some are ‘everyday’ birds; some are unusual; and a few are extremely hard to find, the Kirtland’s warbler being the rarest and therefore the most prized sighting of all. I will be returning to the Kirtland’s in more detail in due course.

Pine Warbler, Abaco

At the bottom of this post is a complete list of the Abaco warbler species, with Bahamas bird authority Tony White’s excellent codes indicating (a) when they may be seen; and (b) the likelihood of seeing a particular species (from 1 – 5). First however, news of a great resource for aiding warbler ID, produced by The Warbler Guide. Click on the blue link below to open a pdf with illustrative views of warbler species from several angles, spread of 8 pages. These are the warblers of North America, but you’ll find that almost all the Abaco warblers are featured.

THE WARBLER GUIDE QUICK-FINDERS

SAMPLE PAGE

Warbler Guide Sample Page

Bahama Warbler, Abaco

THE 37 WARBLER SPECIES RECORDED FOR ABACO

WOOD-WARBLERS	PARULIDAE	CODE
Ovenbird	Seiurus aurocapilla	WR 1
Worm-eating Warbler	Helmitheros vermivorum	WR 2
Louisiana Waterthrush	Parkesia motacilla	WR 3
Northern Waterthrush	Parkesia noveboracensis	WR 1
Blue-winged Warbler	Vermivora cyanoptera	WR 3
Black-and-white Warbler	Mniotilta varia	WR 2
Prothonotary Warbler	Protonotaria citrea	TR 3
Swainson’s Warbler	Limnothlypis swainsonii	WR 4
Tennessee Warbler	Oreothlypis peregrina	TR 4
Orange-crowned Warbler	Oreothlypis celata	TR 4
Nashville Warbler	Oreothlypis ruficapilla	WR 4
Connecticut Warbler	Oporonis agilis	TR 4
Kentucky Warbler	Geothlypis formosa	TR 4
Bahama Yellowthroat	Geothlypis rostrata	PR B 1
Common Yellowthroat	Geothlypis trichas	WR 1
Hooded Warbler	Setophaga citrina	WR 3
American Redstart	Setophaga ruticilla	WR 1
Kirtland’s Warbler	Setophaga kirtlandii	WR 4
Cape May Warbler	Setophaga tigrina	WR 1
Northern Parula	Setophaga americana	WR 1
Magnolia Warbler	Setophaga magnolia	WR 3
Bay-breasted Warbler	Setophaga castanea	TR 4
Blackburnian Warbler	Setophaga fusca	TR 4
Yellow Warbler	Setophaga petechia	PR B 1
Chestnut-sided Warbler	Setophaga pensylvanica	TR 4
Blackpoll Warbler	Setophaga striata	TR 3
Black-throated Blue Warbler	Setophaga caerulescens	WR 2
Palm Warbler	Setophaga palmarum	WR 1
Olive-capped Warbler	Setophaga pityophila	PR B 1
Pine Warbler	Setophaga pinus	PR B 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler	Setophaga coronata	WR 2
Yellow-throated Warbler	Setophaga dominica	WR 1
Bahama Warbler	Setophaga flavescens	PR B 1
Prairie Warbler	Setophaga discolor	WR 1
Black-throated Green Warbler	Setophaga virens	WR 3
Wilson’s Warbler	Cardellina pusilla	TR 4
Yellow-breasted Chat	Icteria virens	TR 4