The Mourning Warbler is a skulking warbler of dense, brushy regrowth, named for the male's gray hood and the black, crepe-like patch on his upper breast, said to resemble the veil of a mourner. Olive-green above and bright yellow below beneath the hood, it stays low in tangled vegetation and can be maddeningly hard to see, creeping through the thickest cover and singing from within it. Its rich, rolling song — a churry "cheery-cheery-cheery, chorry-chorry" — is often the only way to locate a bird that refuses to come into the open.
One of the last warblers to arrive each spring, the Mourning Warbler breeds in dense, shrubby second growth — regenerating clearcuts, brushy clearings, and thickets in young forest — across northern Michigan, thriving where recent disturbance has produced thick low cover. It forages near the ground for insects and spiders and departs early for its tropical wintering grounds. Its combination of a beautiful song and a habit of staying hidden makes it a prized find for patient birders.
Feeds on caterpillars, insects, and spiders gleaned from dense low vegetation and the ground, foraging within thickets and brushy tangles. It works close to the ground in heavy cover, taking soft-bodied prey rather than pursuing insects in the open.
The name refers to the male's gray hood and the black, crepe-like patch on his upper breast, which reminded early observers of the veil worn by someone in mourning.
The Mourning Warbler skulks in dense, brushy regrowth and rarely perches in the open, creeping through thick low cover. Birders usually locate it by its rich, rolling song rather than by sight.
Late — it is among the last warblers to return in spring, often not on territory until late May. It breeds in shrubby second growth in the north and departs early in fall for the tropics.
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