Tennessee Warbler
Learn to identify the Tennessee Warbler by ear. Master the "tsee-tsee-tsee, ti-ti-ti, se-se-se-se" phrase and tell it apart from similar species.
What the Tennessee Warbler sounds like
Male delivers a rapid, high-pitched series of short notes in three sequences, each repeated several times. Often described as sounding like 'chip-chip-chip, che-che-che, chit-chit-chit'. Carries far across the boreal forest.
How to tell it apart
Where you'll hear it
Breeds across Canada, Alaska, and the extreme northern United States; migrates through the eastern two-thirds of the U.S.; winters from southern Mexico through Central America to northern South America and the Caribbean.
Breeds in young, moist spruce-fir and mixed boreal forests with a dense understory of shrubs; during migration found in almost any shrubby edge, second-growth woodland, parks, and gardens.
Long-distance Neotropical migrant. Present on North American breeding grounds May–August, southbound migration August–October, winters November–March, northbound migration April–May.
How to recognize it by sight
Despite its name, the Tennessee Warbler spends little time in Tennessee. This slender, energetic wood-warbler is olive-green above and clean whitish to pale gray below, with a sharp, needle-like bill it uses to glean caterpillars from foliage. Males deliver a rapid, three-part song from the canopy during the breeding season.
Similar species
Orange-crowned Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler often shows soft streaking on the breast and flanks, with yellow undertail coverts and a less crisp face.
Philadelphia Vireo
Stouter bill and slower, deliberate movements.
Warbling Vireo
Longer body and thicker bill.