The Cape May warbler is a species of New World warbler. It breeds in northern North America. Its breeding range spans all but the westernmost parts of southern Canada, the Great Lakes region, and New England. It is migratory, wintering in the West Indies. This species is a very rare vagrant to western Europe, with two records in Britain as of October 2013. The English name refers to Cape May, New Jersey, where George Ord collected the specimen that was later described by Alexander Wilson.
Region
Northern North America and the Caribbean
Typical Environment
Breeds across the boreal forest of southern Canada and the northern United States, especially in spruce–fir stands. During migration it passes through the Great Lakes region, New England, and the eastern U.S., using woodlots, parks, and forest edges. In winter it is primarily in the West Indies and parts of the Caribbean basin, occasionally southern Florida and the Yucatán. Prefers coniferous canopy in the breeding season but is adaptable to fruiting and flowering trees in wintering areas.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2000 m
Climate Zone
Other
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Despite its name, the Cape May warbler rarely occurs at Cape May except during migration; the name comes from the locality where the type specimen was collected. It has a semi-tubular, curled tongue that allows it to sip nectar and sap in winter, unusual for a warbler. Populations fluctuate with outbreaks of spruce budworm, a favored prey. It will sometimes visit hummingbird feeders on the wintering grounds.
South Padre Island - Texas
Temperament
active and agile
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with quick, bounding movements
Social Behavior
Often forages high in the canopy and joins mixed-species flocks during migration and on the wintering grounds. Breeding pairs are territorial; the female builds a cup nest high in dense conifers, usually near the trunk. Clutches typically contain 4–6 eggs, and both parents feed the young.
Migratory Pattern
Seasonal migrant
Song Description
Song is a high, thin, sibilant series of see-see-see notes, often accelerating and slightly rising, reminiscent of an insect. Call notes are sharp, high tsip or tsee that carry well through the canopy.
Plumage
Breeding males show bright yellow underparts heavily streaked with black, a dark cap, and a rich chestnut cheek patch, with olive upperparts and a yellow rump. Females and nonbreeding birds are duller olive-yellow with finer streaking and lack the bold chestnut cheek, but retain a yellowish rump. Two white wing bars and a clean, pointed warbler bill are typical. Overall appearance is ‘tiger-striped’ below, especially in males.
Diet
Primarily consumes insects, especially spruce budworm caterpillars, as well as other larvae, flies, and spiders gleaned from foliage and twigs. During winter it supplements with nectar, fruit, and tree sap, using its semi-tubular tongue. It may visit sapsucker wells and occasionally hummingbird feeders for sugary liquids. Opportunistic shifts in diet occur during budworm outbreaks and in nectar-rich wintering habitats.
Preferred Environment
Feeds high in conifer canopies on the breeding grounds, often at branch tips. In migration and winter it forages in gardens, plantations, flowering trees, and at sap wells on trunks. It frequently works through mixed flocks in the mid to upper canopy.
