Northern Parula, Parula americana

Warblers

The Northern Parula, Parula americana, is a small New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southern Canada to Florida.

This species is migratory, wintering in the southern Florida, Central America and the West Indies. This species is a very rare vagrant to western Europe.

The Northern Parula is 11 cm long and has mainly gray upperparts, with a greenish back patch and two white wingbars. The breast is yellowish shading into the white belly. The summer male has bluish and rufous breast bands and prominent white eye crescents. Females are duller and lack the breast bands. The breeding habitat is humid woodland with growths of Old Man’s Beard lichen or Spanish moss. Northern Parulas nest in trees in clumps of these mosses, laying 3-7 eggs in a scantily-lined cup nest.

These birds feed on insects and spiders. Their song is a click-like trill or buzz, zeeeeee-yip. Their call is a soft chip.

References

• New World Warblers by Curson, Quinn and Beadle, ISBN 0-7136-3932-6

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