Connecticut warbler

Connecticut warbler (Oporornis agilis)
Photo © Rob Curtis/The Early Birder

FEATURES
The Connecticut warbler averages about five and three-fourths to six inches long (tail tip to bill tip in preserved specimen). It has a white ring around the eye. The body feathers under the tail reach almost to the end of the tail. A breeding male has gray head and throat feathers. A breeding female has gray-brown feathers in the same areas. The rest of the underside feathers are yellow, and the back feathers are green-brown.

BEHAVIORS
Spring migrants arrive in Illinois in late spring, usually May. They are seen close to the ground where they walk instead of hopping as most songbirds do. They nest north of Illinois in Canada. Fall migrants are more commonly seen in northeastern Illinois than in the rest of the state and begin arriving in August. The species winters in South America. It eats insects and fruits.

​Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Parulidae