Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens)

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A Field Guide to Warblers of North America (The Peterson Field Guide Series). by Kimball L. Garrett, Jon L. Dunn, Cindy House (Illustrator)

Warblers of Eastern North America

Color Photograph: © by and courtesy of John Cassady

Recording by John R. Sauer, U.S. Geological Survey

Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens)

Identification: 6.25 inches from tip of bill to tip of tail.

Breeding Male: The Yellow-breasted Chat is about 6.25 inches long and larger than any other species of warbler. The back is olive-brown. The throast, breast, and sides are bright yellow and the belly is white. A strong white eye ring and band over makes the bird look as if its is wearing glasses.

Female: Similar to the male.

Fall Male and Female: Similar to the male.

Immature: Similar to the male.

Similar Species: The large size of the Yellow-breasted Chat combined with the spectacled eyes and the bright yellow throat and breast will easily identify this species. It might be confused with the male Common Yellowthroat, but the male Common Yellowthroat is a much smaller bird (4.25 inches in length) and has a conspicuous, triangular black mask over the eye.

Breeding Range (see map below): The Yellow-breasted Chat breeds in most of the United States except for New England, Florida, and northern mid-west. The range of the species barely reaches southern Canada in the west.

Overwintering Range: America tropics.

Habitat: The Yellow-breasted Chat is found in thicks and dense brush. A common place to find it is in tangles of raspberries and blackberries.. The species is also sometimes found on dry hillsides.

Food: Primarily insects, but some fruit.

Behavior: The male has a distinctive display, hovering with slowing flapping wings and dangling feet, somewhat like a mockingbird. The song is a series of widely spaced croaks, whistles and very atypical of a warbler song. The species commonly sings at night.

Reproduction: The nest is a large massof grass, leaves, and bark, lined with fine grass. The nest is concealed in the thick brush it lives in. The clutch consists of 3 to 6 white eggs spotted with brown. The incubation period is typically 11 days and the young leave the nest about 8 days later.