Setophaga cerulea
Silhouette: Dylan GE Gomes · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The cerulean warbler (Setophaga cerulea) is a small songbird in the family Parulidae. It is a long-distance migrant, breeding in eastern North American hardwood forests and wintering on the Eastern slope of the Andes in South America during non-breeding season, preferring subtropical forests.
It displays strong sexual dichromatism: Adult males have cerulean blue and white upperparts, with a black necklace across the breast and black streaks on the back and flanks. Females and immature birds have bluish-green upperparts, a pale stripe over the eye, no streaking, and are yellow below. All have two white wing bars and a thin, pointed bill.
The cerulean warbler is insectivorous and predominantly feeds on insect larvae, though it also comsumes winged insects. It forages for prey and nests high in forest canopies. Individuals are strongly territorial; males will defend areas of forests. Males arrive on breeding grounds about one to two weeks earlier than females. Breeding and incubation take place from late May to early June.
The species is rated as near threatened on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)'s Red List of endangered species, indicating it is under risk of becoming vulnerable in the near future. The population of the cerulean warbler has been under rapid decline, though in recent years this decline has slowed. Deforestation in its non-breeding range continues to reduce its available habitat. Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Bogota | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 4 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Havana | 🇨🇺 Cuba | |
| 6 | Medellín | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 7 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 10 | Miami | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Cerulean Warbler sighting in Shenandoah National Park on a given day, based on 857 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 51st most-seen of the 186 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Cerulean Warbler in Shenandoah National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to March, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cerulean 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.
Yes
Of the 22 parks where we can rate Cerulean Warbler sightings, Shenandoah National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Point Pelee National Park (Canada, under 5%) and Henri Pittier National Park (Venezuela, under 5%).
Same genus: Setophaga
The closest relatives of the Cerulean Warbler that you can see in Shenandoah National Park (genus Setophaga, Setophaga Warblers) are American Redstart (about 30%), Hooded Warbler (about 20%) and Yellow-rumped Warbler (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cerulean Warbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Shenandoah National Park (857 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.
