Learn the song and call of the Northern Parula (Setophaga americana).

This bird forages at the top of the canopy so it can be hard to spot. Luckily, it's easy to hear. It calls with gusto, often ending an ascending trill with a loud hiccup. Getting a close look at the bird is worth the effort. It's among the most ostentatious of our migratory warblers: A blue head and back, bright wingbars, yellow under the bill, and a partial eyering that puts a white dot above and below each eye. Males even have a dark band across on their front, sometimes with a bit of orange in it. It's an absolute mess of color and a joy to behold. 

Do you want to learn more bird songs, frog calls, and insect noises? Join Voice of the Wild every Friday to explore a new wild voice. From time to time, we’ll also do a deep dive into wildlife science, news, and natural history. Voice of the Wild is brought to you by the University of Illinois Extension Natural Resources, Environment, and Energy program.

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The following Macaulay Library recordings were used in today’s episode:

ML509167 by Robert C. Stein and William W. H. Gunn, ML509169 by Gregory Budney, and ML509171 by Randolph Little and James Kimball