Fall Warblers: Need IDs on these from Pennsylvania (1 Viewer)

[rwpierce]

All these Warblers were photographed in southeastern PA over the last few days. Number one , I think is female Common Yellowthroat.
Numbers 2 & 3 are perhaps Nashville.
And the last image of a Tennessee. Any ID help or verification would be appreciated.

 

[tom baxter]

1. Common yellowthroat
2&3 Connecticut warbler
4 female black-throated blue warbler.

 

[A2GG]

I think you have the first 2 species correct , but last one looks
like Black-throated Blue female.

 

[tom baxter]

I think you have the first 2 species correct , but last one looks
like Black-throated Blue female.

#2 the bill is far too large for Nashville. It’s a Connecticut. In #3, definitely Connecticut- in addition to the extensive gray hood and gray tones covering the throat area, Nashville can be easily ruled out because they have a white vent (region where legs meet the body), and this bird has a yellow vent.

Added this for ID help as per OP request. I glanced too quickly at first and didn’t read your request.

 

[A2GG]

I think Tom is probably right about Connecticut.
The bill doesn't look right for Nashville.

 

[A2GG]

#2 the bill is far too large for Nashville. It’s a Connecticut. In #3, definitely Connecticut- in addition to the extensive gray hood and gray tones covering the throat area, Nashville can be easily ruled out because they have a white vent (region where legs meet the body), and this bird has a yellow vent.

Added this for ID help as per OP request. I glanced too quickly at first and didn’t read your request.

We keep posting at the same time. I agree with you (see post 5).
I looked for white vent but didn't think it was the best angle to show that area. I have little experience with either species.

 

[Brian J Small]

#2 the bill is far too large for Nashville. It’s a Connecticut. In #3, definitely Connecticut- in addition to the extensive gray hood and gray tones covering the throat area, Nashville can be easily ruled out because they have a white vent (region where legs meet the body), and this bird has a yellow vent.

Added this for ID help as per OP request. I glanced too quickly at first and didn’t read your request.

Tom

I feel that 2 and 3 are Nashville. On structure alone, the primary extension of Connecticut is longer than here; also the emarginations are very long (beyond tertial tips) on Connecticut, compared with here where they are well defined and shorter than the tertial tip. The undertail coverts, too, on Connecticut extend beyond the primary tips - see images here https://ebird.org/checklist/S74171957 - and note the amount of tail extension beyond the undertail covert tip to tail tip.

Plumage differences are less obvious here, but this still looks better for Nashville.

Brian

 

[RudiJG1]

And Nashville has a yellowish vent and a white lower belly, just to clarify differences.

 

[A2GG]

And Nashville has a yellowish vent and a white lower belly, just to clarify differences.

That's right . Yesterday I saw my 3rd Nashville ever and i was able to see that section of white when it flew up. I've only seen a Connecticut once and that was several years ago.

 

[RudiJG1]

The bird’s yellowish throat supports Nashville Warbler ID.

 

[tom baxter]

And Nashville has a yellowish vent and a white lower belly, just to clarify differences.

Brian, good call. The primary projection and length of under tail coverts is like the thumbprint of a bird and is always a very important ID point for Connecticut. I didn’t look very closely at it because of picture #3 in particular, which plumage wise is extremely suggestive of Connecticut warbler.

Nashville has a yellow breast, yellow belly, white vent and yellow under tail coverts. It is normally a very useful ID point to look for a white vent to separate Nashville from orange crowned and in far less frequent cases (like here) Connecticut. This one is a real surprise to me because the plumages of Nashville and Connecticut don’t usually overlap as much as this one. This Nashville has a very gray throat in the pictures and almost no white in the vent. A casual look at this is very misleading. Thanks Brian for pointing out the primary projection, and I’d add the under tail coverts of Connecticut make them look very short tailed. See here

https://search.macaulaylibrary.org/catalog?taxonCode=conwar&q=Connecticut%20Warbler%20-%20Oporornis%20agilis

 

[tom baxter]

That's right . Yesterday I saw my 3rd Nashville ever and i was able to see that section of white when it flew up. I've only seen a Connecticut once and that was several years ago.

That’s not accurate though... Nashville does in fact have a white vent. I’m confused about why this correction was made to the contrary. Reference a picture in any field guide and it will show a white vent for Nashville. This is a commonly used ID point for Nashville.

 

[A2GG]

That’s not accurate though... Nashville does in fact have a white vent. I’m confused about why this correction was made to the contrary. Reference a picture in any field guide and it will show a white vent for Nashville. This is a commonly used ID point for Nashville.

I just looked at The Warbler Guide which has great photos from every angle.
It states and shows in the photos that the vent is white. However, allaboutbirds.org states the "lower belly" is white, so there's a bit of confusion there. I use that website a lot.
It seems you're correct. It's good to know this stuff since I haven't seen enough of these birds.

 

[HeadWest]

Nashville Warbler. The length of the undertail coverts relative to the tail rule out Connecticut. It also has a decent amount of yellow on the throat.

Just for the record, Nashville warblers DO have a white vent.

 

[RudiJG1]

Just for the record, Nashville warblers DO have a white vent.

There seems to be a difference of opinion about the where on the bird this white area is. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Birds of the World reference (https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/naswar/cur/appearance#idsum) refers to it as "lower belly", and the USFW Patuxent Wildlife Research Center's website (https://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i6450id.html) refers to it as "belly".

 

[rwpierce]

Thanks for all the discussions about the Nashville/Connecticut. I am guessing that the consensus is now Nashville.