Black-and-white Warblers are medium-sized warblers (small songbirds). They have a fairly long, slightly downcurved bill. The head often appears somewhat flat and streamlined, with a short neck. The wings are long and the tail is short. Their names actually describe them well. You have to listen very closely to hear their song.
They can be found on Seabrook Island right now. They do winter/breed in tropical regions. Black-and-white Warblers eat mostly insects. Moth and butterfly larvae form the bulk of their diet during spring migration and throughout the breeding season. Other prey includes ants, flies, spiders, click and leaf beetles, wood-borers, leafhoppers, and weevils. They also feed on insects attracted to Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker. Black-and-white Warblers crawl along tree trunks and thick limbs as they probe methodically between bark fibers for grubs and insects. Unlike Brown Creepers, which tend to move up a tree as they feed, or nuthatches, which typically move downward, this warbler moves in every direction.
The female Black-and-white Warbler selects a well-hidden nesting location at the base of a tree, rock, stump, or fallen log, or under a bush or shrub. Nests are usually built on the ground but occasionally are placed in a cavity atop a tree stump, in a rock crevice, or on a mossy bank up to six feet high.
Black-and-white Warblers are common, but populations have declined between 1966 and 2019, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Partners in Flight estimates the global breeding population at 18 million and rates them 10 out of 20 on the Continental Concern Score
If you would like to learn more about the Black and White Warbler, you can visit The Cornell Lab of Ornithology – All About Birders- Black and White Warbler
Article submitted by Melanie Jerome
Photographs provided by Alan Fink and Jenni Hesterman
This blog post is part of a series SIB will publish on a regular basis to feature birds seen in the area, both migratory and permanent residents. When possible we will use photographs taken by our members. Please let us know if you have any special requests of birds you would like to learn more about.
