Species

Yellow-breasted chat

Icteria virens

A big, loud, yellow-breasted songbird of thickets that whistles, chuckles and cackles like several birds at once.

Photo Unknown photographer (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC0 1.0 (opens in a new tab)

Communication

At a glance

Size: About 17 to 19 cm long
Weight: About 20 to 34 g
Habitat: Dense thickets and overgrown fields
Diet: Insects and berries
In Georgia: A common summer resident, April to September
Voice: Whistles, cackles, chuckles and squawks, often at night
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: Olive back; bright yellow throat and breast; white spectacles; thick bill
Told apart from: Common yellowthroat, which is smaller with a black mask
Where to look: Dense thickets; listen for its strange song

Behaviour

Yellow-breasted chats sing from hidden perches and sometimes in display flights with dangling legs. They often sing at night.

Why they matter

The yellow-breasted chat was long classified as a warbler but is now placed in a family of its own. It depends on thick, shrubby habitat that is easily cleared.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A bulky cup in dense shrubs
Eggs — Usually three to five
Incubation — About 11 to 12 days
Chicks — Fed by both parents
Lifespan — Several years

Living around people

Thickets left uncleared support chats.

Misconceptions

A strange noise in a thicket at night is an animal in trouble. It may be a singing chat.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	In Central America	In Central America	In Central America	Arriving	Nesting	Nesting	Young fledging	Present	Leaving	Last birds	In Central America	In Central America

Where it lives

Recorded in 82 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

If you found one

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