"An Uncommon Beauty"

Black-and-white Warbler

    The Black-and-white Warbler is perhaps the easiest warbler to identify with its contrasting black and white plumage. It has an unusually long hind toe and claw on each foot to allow it to move securely on the surface of tree bark. This adaptation gives it a distinctive nuthatch-like feeding strategy. Moving up and down tree trunks and along branches, it feed on insects and spiders. Black-and-white Warblers are one of the earliest arriving Neotropical migrants in the spring because their bark-gleaning foraging habits do not require them to wait for spring foliage growth. They are common in summer throughout the eastern United States and Canada. Come winter, the Black-and-white Warbler’s range extends from Florida to Venezuela and Colombia. This Black-and-white Warbler is unusually aggressive for a warbler. It sometimes attacks and fights with Nuthatches, Chickadees, Warblers, and other species in defense of its staked out feeding and mating territory.

    Is it possible to see a Black-and-white Warbler in southern Utah?  The answer....Yes!  This uncommon beauty has been seen several places like Red Hills Golf Course, Red Cliffs Campground, Santa Clara Heights, etc. They just keep showing up... so keep a sharp lookout, and if you hear a high pitched "wee-see, wee-see, wee-see, wee-see, wee-see" it’s possible! Migration is on its way. Wind, storms, drought, and loss of habitat all play a part in where birds show up.

    Brenda Rusnell is the artist for the Black-and-white Warbler. Thank you for this beautiful rendition. If you are interested in learning more to identify birds... come on a Red Cliffs Audubon Field Trip. Saturday, October 11, 2008. We will visit Quail Creek Reservoir, Hurricane Sewer Ponds (hey...birds like it), Grandpa’s Pond, and the Red Cliffs Campground. We should see migrating Ducks, Gulls, Shorebirds, Loons, and Songbirds. Meet at St. George BLM at 8:00 a.m. Bring lunch. For more information call Marilyn Davis 435 673-0996.