Yellow-breasted chats are large songbirds and are the New World warbler family's most atypical member. In the spring the male delivers a fluid cascade of whistles, chuckles, cackles, and gurgles. For the remainder of the year, the birds are rarely seen or heard, both males and females skulking silently within the shadows of thickets, gleaning berries and insects and berries. This species is North America's largest warbler, and perhaps the strangest, being like a cross between a mockingbird and a warbler. It is the only member of the family Icteriidae. It was once a member of the New World warbler family, but in 2017, the American Ornithological Society moved it to its own family. Its placement is not definitely resolved.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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OmnivoreAn omnivore is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and ani...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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MonogamyMonogamy is a form of relationship in which both the male and the female has only one partner. This pair may cohabitate in an area or territory for...
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PolygynandryPolygynandry is a mating system in which both males and females have multiple mating partners during a breeding season.
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MigratingAnimal migration is the relatively long-distance movement of individual animals, usually on a seasonal basis. It is the most common form of migrati...
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ChatterboxesThese birds have olive upper parts with white bellies and bright-yellow throats and breasts. Other signature features of yellow-breasted chats are their large, white eye rings, and blackish legs. When seen, this species is unlikely to be mistaken for any other bird. This species reaches a total length of 17 to 19.1 cm (6.7 to 7.5 in) and a wingspan of 23 to 27 cm (9.1 to 10.6 in). Body mass can range from 20.2 to 33.8 g (0.71 to 1.19 oz). Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 7.1 to 8.4 cm (2.8 to 3.3 in), the elongated tail is 6.9 to 8.6 cm (2.7 to 3.4 in), the relatively long, heavy bill is 1.3 to 1.6 cm (0.51 to 0.63 in), and the tarsus is 2.5 to 3.1 cm (0.98 to 1.22 in).
Yellow-breasted chats breed across the eastern United States and southern Canada, from New York to Iowa and south to Texas and North Florida. They mainly migrate to Mexico and Central America for the winter, although some may overwinter in coastal areas farther north. These birds prefer to live in areas where dense shrubbery is common. Today, they are often found in abandoned farmland and other rural areas with overgrown vegetation, around riparian areas, and on wood edges.
Yellow-breasted chats are diurnal, shy, and solitary birds; they are heard more often than seen, moving furtively among vegetation. They seek dense cover for searching for insects and also for nest cover. These birds use songs as their main source of communication. If females are present, males tend to sing to one another. They sing at night, often mimicking other birds. Their repertoire ranges from 41 to 100 types of songs. A male will share his songs, which allows for matched counter singing, where a male sings a certain song and another male reply with the same song. The songs communicate territorial interactions and determine dominance. A Yellow-breasted chat sings more during the preparation period than during incubation and the post-fledging period.
Yellow-breasted chats are omnivores; they eat small invertebrates, insects (ants, bees, wasps, grasshoppers, and beetles) during the breeding season, and mainly fruit in late summer (blackberries, strawberries, and grapes).
The mating system of this species ranges from monogamy (where one male mates with one female only), being the most common, to polygynandry (promiscuous), where males and females both have multiple mates. During the courtship period, the male sings from a perch that is exposed and does a hovering display flight, his head raised and his legs extended toward the ground, singing a complex song at the same time. He will hover and then drop back to his perch. These birds breed from May until July. They sometimes nest in loose colonies, though with separate territories, and they may produce two broods in a season. The nest is a cup made from weeds, dry leaves, and grapevine bark, located in a tangle of vines or a small bush, built by the female. 3 to 5 eggs are laid, which are creamy or white, smooth and glossy, speckled with purple or reddish. Incubation is for around 11 to 12 days, by the female. Chicks are altricial when they hatch, and both parents feed them. They fledge at around 8 to 11 days old. Once they leave the nest, the chicks remain nearby until able to forage on their own.
Yellow-breasted chats are threatened by habitat loss, by the clearing of lowland riparian woods and thickets for agriculture, residential and commercial development.
According to the What Bird resource, the total population size of the Yellow-breasted chat is around 12 million individuals. According to the All About Birds resource, the total population of the species is 13 million individuals, of which 90% spend part of their year in the U.S., with 50% in Mexico. Overall, currently, Yellow-breasted chats are classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and their numbers today remain stable.