Hey guys welcome back! Well fall migration is in full swing, and this is one bird that, if you live in the east, you’ll probably be seeing around about now. The black-throated green warbler. That’s a mouthful! The black-throated green warbler (I’m gonna just go with BTGW for short) is one of three “black-throated <insert color here>” warblers. However, they are actually more closely related to the Hermit, Townsend’s and Golden-cheeked warblers (as you can see, they look pretty similar.)
At first glance, you’re probably thinking, “Ok, I see the black throat but this bird is yellow not green!” At least that’s what I thought the first time I saw one. Well, yes their faces are yellow, but their back is a sort of olive green, hence the name. Allaboutbirds.org says that the BTGW is often thought of as birds of mountain forests, but I’ve seen tons of them both in New York City and in St. Louis when I lived in those cities, and there ain’t no mountains there! ID is actually pretty easy with this one. Even though it’s close cousins (Townsend’s, hermit, and golden-cheeked) do look like it, they are all found in the west, while the BTGW is found in the east, with no overlap (except in Central America and Mexico.) Often, you’ll see them way up high in a tree, but their black throat makes them easy to pick out especially from underneath. In fall, the lack throat is less vivd as in the bird at the top of this post, but it’s still there!
These were some of the most plentiful warblers I saw last fall when I was birding in St. Louis. They seemed to be everywhere, including at eye level! Perfect placement for photographing them! I think that will about do it for today. Next time, our first grosbeak species! See you all then!
Feathered Focus 
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