Watercolor portrait of American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)

What does the American Redstart call sound like?

Setophaga ruticilla
Call Common

Play the real American Redstart call, the "tsip-tsip... see-see-swee!", and learn what to listen for.

“tsip-tsip... see-see-swee!”

What the American Redstart call sounds like

Soft high chips lead into short, changeable whistled song phrases. The clip moves from call-like notes into a full dawn song.

“tsip-tsip... see-see-swee!”

Birders often file this one under First-light chips into song.

Call vs. song: telling the two apart

The same bird makes both. They sound nothing alike.

The call (this page)

Soft high chips lead into short, changeable whistled song phrases. The clip moves from call-like notes into a full dawn song.

“tsip-tsip... see-see-swee!”

The song

A quick string of high, thin notes that tumbles out from a treetop. Males repeat it over and over on breeding territory.

“see-see-see, swee-swee!”

Where you'll hear it

In breeding season, look in open deciduous woods, second growth, and willow or alder thickets, often near water. During migration and winter, it favors forest edges, mangroves, gardens, and shade coffee where insects stay active.

American Redstart call FAQ

What does an American Redstart call sound like?
Soft high chips lead into short, changeable whistled song phrases. The clip moves from call-like notes into a full dawn song. Birders write it as "tsip-tsip... see-see-swee!".
How do I tell an American Redstart from a Magnolia Warbler by ear?
Magnolia Warbler: Magnolia Warbler is yellow below with a bold black necklace and back pattern, not black-and-orange like an adult male American Redstart.; When it fans its tail, look for white undertail coverts and a white band or white markings on a black-tipped tail—not orange or yellow tail patches..
When is the best time to hear the American Redstart call?
They surge north in spring, and males can seem to sing from every treetop in May and June. By late summer they grow quieter and slip south, but they stay lively on wintering grounds in tropical woods, mangroves, and even southern Florida.

More American Redstart sounds

American Redstart: the full species pageEvery sound we have, field marks, habitat and similar species.American Redstart songThe full song, not the call.How to Identify Bird Sounds (By Ear & With Apps)Learning to identify bird sounds is how you stop letting those moments slip by. It is also one of the fastest ways to feel like birds are no longer random background noise but neighbors you actually recognize.How to Learn Bird Calls Fast: A 7-Day Spring PlanYou have seven days. You want seven birds. This is the plan: one new song per day, a mnemonic per bird, ten minutes you steal from your coffee break. Sunday-to-Sunday, you walk outside and a name lands in your head before you have time to think about it.