Episode 100: Pine Warbler – Voice of the Wild

Episode Number
100
Date Published
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Episode Show Notes / Description
Pine Warbler (Setophaga pinus). 

The early warbler with a rich trill. 

Voice of the Wild is a podcast about wildlife and the wild sounds they make. 
The following Cornell Lab | Macaulay Library recordings were used in this episode: 
  • Pine warbler song by Wil Hershberger (ML509276) 
  • Pine warbler call by Wil Hershberger (ML509283) 
  • Pine warbler tink call by Wil Hershberger (ML509282) 
  • Chipping sparrow fast song by Robert C. Stein and Randolph Little (ML509489) 
  • Chipping sparrow slow song by Wil Hershberger (ML509486) 
Sources and more: 
  • https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pine_Warbler
  • https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/pine-warbler
  • Dobson, C., Kassenbaum, D., Oehmke, D., & Misewicz, M. (2023). Field guide to hotspots and birds in Illinois. Scissortail LLC.
  • Godfrey, M. A., & Kaufman, Kenn. (Directors). (2004). National Audubon Society videoguide to the birds of North America [Video recording]. In Audubon videoguide to 505 birds of North America DVD I & DVD II (Fullscreen.). Godfrey-Stadin Productions.
  • Peterson, R. T., & Peterson, V. M. (1980). A field guide to the birds: A completely new guide to all the birds of eastern and central North America (Fourth edition, completely revised and enlarged.). Houghton Mifflin Company.
  • Sibley, D. (2016). Sibley birds East: Field guide to birds of eastern North America (2nd ed.). Alfred A. Knopf.
  • Stokes, D. W., & Stokes, L. Q. (204 C.E.). Stokes Field Guide to Warblers (2nd ed.). Little, Brown and Company.
  • Walton, R. K., & Lawson, R. W. (1989). Birding by Ear: Eastern/Central [Compact Disc]. On Eastern/Central birding by ear. Houghton Mifflin Co.
Transcript
This is Brodie with Illinois Extension and I’m here with a new “voice of the wild”

This singer is a little chunky compared to the other early spring migrating warblers. Males are mostly yellow with blueish wings and both sexes have strong wingbars and a robust beak that’s capable of tackling seeds. You’re likely to hear one singing their rich trilling song from high in a pine tree. This is the pine warbler.

Many a hopeful birder has spent a long time trying to get their eyes on a pine warbler… that ended up being a chipping sparrow. They sound similar, but the key difference is in their tone. I think of them as playing the same song but on different instruments. Here’s the Chipper’s drier and more mechanical song. and now the pine’s with a richer and more organic sound.

Thank you to the Macaulay library at the Cornell lab for today’s sound. Learn more about voice of the wild at go.illinois.edu/VOW