Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Cape May Warbler (Setophaga tigrina)

Cape May Warbler [ventral view of alternate-plumaged male]: Photograph Credit: Terry M. Campbell; Celina, Clay County, Tennessee; 30 April 2015.

Abundance: Uncommon during spring and Very Uncommon during fall; recorded in 24 Regional counties (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population migrating through the Region, especially during fall (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Transient during spring and fall; photograph (see above).

Regional High Count and SBC/SBB High Count: 20 (7/8 May 1966; Cumberland County, Tennessee [SBC]; TOS members); Next Highest Count:16 (8 May 2009; Cumberland County, Tennessee; Edmund K. LeGrand, an eBird record).

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Spring: 8 April 2018 (Putnam County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2006–2018)–23 May 1990 (Putnam County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2006–2015).

    Fall: 24 August 2010 (Pulaski County, Kentucky; Roseanna M. Denton; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2011a)–25 October 1983 (Pulaski County, Kentucky; Jackie B. Elmore; Stamm 1984a).

    Note: Most likely to be encountered from late April to mid-May during spring; during fall there is no period during which it is more likely than during any other period. Regional dates of earliest reported spring arrival and latest reported spring departure, as well as earliest reported fall arrival and latest reported fall departure, for the migration seasons 2002–2011 follow:

Habitat: Blooming tulip poplars are especially attractive to this warbler during spring, but evergreens are also attractive to it at that season; during fall may be found in almost any habitat with trees, often mixed in with foraging flocks composed of many species of warblers.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: Registered on 3 (of 125 possible) monthly check-lists during 2003 and on 7 (of 206 possible) check-lists during 2004, leading to YardWatch frequency classifications of Rare and Very Uncommon, respectively; the Cape May is even less likely to be encountered in Regional yards and neighborhoods than in the Region as a whole, especially during fall.

Remarks: During spring difficult to identify by its weak-sounding, high-pitched "song," which is quite variable and which is easily confusable with songs of the Bay-breasted Warbler and even some songs of Blackpoll Warblers, so visual identification of suspected singing Cape Mays is a prudent approach. During fall, the plumage of Cape May Warbler is highly variable and rather difficult to deal with compared to its more striking spring plumage.

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited