Life List 085
Visually documented
MacGillivray’s Warbler
Geothlypis tolmiei
- First photographed
- June 25, 2026
- First location
- Utah, United States
- Conservation status
- Least Concern
An evolving study
MacGillivray’s Warbler portfolio
This collection grows as I return to photograph new behavior, habitat, seasons, and stages of life.
Natural history
Species at a glance
Geothlypis tolmiei
Overview
MacGillivray's Warbler is a skulking western warbler that favors dense vegetation but often sings from a higher exposed perch. It spends much of its time close to the ground, moving through leaves and tangles.
Identification
Adult males have a slate-gray hood, blackish lores, broken white eye arcs, and bright yellow underparts. Females and immatures are olive and gray with yellow below and a subtler version of the broken eye ring.
Range
Breeds from Alaska and western Canada through western mountain ranges to the southwestern United States. It winters in Mexico and northern Central America.
Habitat
Dense streamside thickets, wet mountain meadows, brushy forest edges, regenerating burns, willow patches, and tangled undergrowth.
Diet
Insects, spiders, and other small arthropods gleaned from leaves, stems, and the ground.
Photography by Brittany Templin
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