Hi everyone! Today's bird of the week is the "Canada Warbler". These little birds prefer a mix of coniferous/deciduous forests with lots of shrubs underneath. These birds are the last of our warblers to arrive from the south and they leave just shortly after the young leave the nest, so they are not here for very long. Up to 6 eggs are laid in a nest on the ground, often under the roots of an uprooted tree. Incubation period is 11 to 12 days and the young are in the nest for about 8 days. They spend their winters in northern South America, a trip of about 3,000 miles (about 4800 km). All for a stay up here of less than 2 months. They eat various insects and spiders. The oldest known Canada warbler was a male that was 8 years old, from the time it was banded to when it was caught and released again. So it obviously was older since it was an adult when banded. These are rather uncommon warblers whose numbers have fallen by 62% since 1970. This is largely due to forestry practices of clearing out underbrush from forests. Loss of nests from cowbirds is another, though lesser, reason. They breed here in Canada from northern B.C. through to Nova Scotia, and in the U.S. from northern Minnesota through to Maine and south in the Appalachians to N. Carolina. Have a great day everyone and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2021 Steve McLeod.