General
Chestnut-sided Warbler: Medium-sized warbler with black-streaked upperparts, white underparts, and chestnut-brown flanks. Cap is bright yellow and moustache stripe is black. Female has less chestnut-brown on flanks. Winter adult and juvenile have lime-green upperparts, conspicuous yellow eye-ring, dark gray wings with two yellow bars, and gray underparts.
Range and Habitat
Chestnut-sided Warbler: Breeds from south-central Canada east to Nova Scotia, south to east-central U.S., and in the Appalachian Mountains. Spends winters in the tropics. Preferred habitats include young, open, second-growth woodlands and scrub.
Breeding and Nesting
Chestnut-sided Warbler: Three to five brown and purple blotched, white to pale green eggs are laid in a grass-and-bark nest lined with hair and rootlets, and built a few feet above the ground in a small tree or bush. Incubation ranges from 11 to 13 days and is carried out by the female.
Foraging and Feeding
Chestnut-sided Warbler: Feeds mostly on insects and some fruits. Forages alone, searching undersides of leaves, hopping from branch to branch with tail cocked.
Readily Eats
Sugar Water, Fruit, Nut Pieces
Vocalization
Chestnut-sided Warbler: Song is rich and musical with an emphatic ending, sometimes interpreted as "please-please-pleased to meetcha."
Similar Species
Chestnut-sided Warbler: Bay-breasted Warbler has brown crown and dark throat. Golden-winged Warbler resembles immature, but has a dark throat and cheek patch.