Setophaga palmarum
Silhouette: Dylan GE Gomes · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The palm warbler (Setophaga palmarum) is a small songbird in the New World warbler family. Measurements: Length: 12–14 cm (4.7–5.5 in) Wingspan: 20–21 cm (7.9–8.3 in) Weight: 8.5–14.2 g (0.30–0.50 oz) The species comprises two subspecies, with fairly extensive intergradation and mixing where they meet.
S. p. palmarum ("brown palm warbler" or "western palm warbler") inhabits the western two-thirds of the breeding range, and migrates southeast to winter on the Atlantic coast from Delaware to Florida (with a few on the Gulf coast west to Louisiana). It has much less yellow below, with less colorful streaking, and cold grayish-brown upper parts.
S. p. hypochrysea ("yellow palm warbler" or "eastern palm warbler") of the eastern third of the breeding range, and migrates southwest to winter on the Gulf coast from western Florida to Texas; it migrates later in the fall than its western counterpart. It has brownish-olive upper parts and thoroughly yellow underparts with bold rufous breast and flank streaking.
Palm warblers breed in open coniferous bogs and edge east of the Continental Divide, across Canada and the northeastern United States... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Havana | 🇨🇺 Cuba | |
| 2 | Miami | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Orlando | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 9 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Detroit | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Butterfly World | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Palm Warbler sighting in Riding Mountain National Park on a given day, based on 71 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 95th most-seen of the 181 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Palm Warbler in Riding Mountain National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, June–July and December–February, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Palm Warbler sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
12th of 34
Of the 34 parks where we can rate Palm Warbler sightings, Riding Mountain National Park ranks 12th at about 10%. The best odds are in Ciénaga de Zapata (Cuba, about 60%), Everglades National Park (United States, about 60%) and Big Cypress National Preserve (United States, about 50%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Setophaga
The closest relatives of the Palm Warbler that you can see in Riding Mountain National Park (genus Setophaga, Setophaga Warblers) are Yellow-rumped Warbler (about 50%), Chestnut-sided Warbler (about 40%) and American Redstart (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Palm Warbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Riding Mountain National Park (71 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
