Photo: tcantrell52 / CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Yellow-breasted Chat
Icteria virens
Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens) — Songbirds & Perching Birds of North America.
Found across 20 guides in our atlas — open any for the full checklist, photos and what's around right now.
The Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens) is a member of the Icteridae family found in Central America & Caribbean and North America. Adults weigh 24.9 g. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List (opens in a new tab)Widespread and abundant — not currently at risk.
Where it fits
- Class Aves
- Order Passeriformes
- Family Icteridae Oropendolas, New World Orioles, Blackbirds
- Genus Icteria
- Species virens
Quick facts
- Weight
- 24.9 g
- Diet
- Invertebrate-eaters
- Family
- Icteridae
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Habitat
- Woodland
How to identify
Similar birds
Least Concern
Least Concern
Near Threatened
Least Concern
Biology & behaviour
Diet
The Yellow-breasted Chat is a invertivore — it feeds mainly on invertebrates such as insects and other small prey.
Behaviour
A bird of semi-open forest, it spends much of its time perched in trees and shrubs.
Migration
The Yellow-breasted Chat is largely sedentary, staying within its range year-round rather than making regular long-distance migrations.
The Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens) belongs to the Icteridae family of the order Passeriformes. It occurs naturally across Central America & Caribbean and North America. Its distribution covers NA, MA widespread.
It is a small bird. Adults weighs around 24.9 g, with a wing length of about 7.7 cm and a tail of around 7.2 cm.
The IUCN Red List currently assesses it as Least Concern. That category covers species that remain widespread and reasonably abundant in the wild.
The species has a mapped global range of roughly 6.2 million km².
Songs & calls
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Yellow-breasted Chat?
The Yellow-breasted Chat is a small bird that weighs around 24.9 g.
Where does the Yellow-breasted Chat live?
The Yellow-breasted Chat is found across Central America & Caribbean and North America with a range covering NA, MA widespread, where it favours woodland, forest and well-treed country.
What family does the Yellow-breasted Chat belong to?
The Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens) belongs to the Icteridae family, in the order Passeriformes.
What does the Yellow-breasted Chat eat?
The Yellow-breasted Chat is a invertivore — it feeds mainly on invertebrates such as insects and other small prey.
Does the Yellow-breasted Chat migrate?
The Yellow-breasted Chat is largely sedentary, staying within its range year-round rather than making regular long-distance migrations.
Is the Yellow-breasted Chat endangered?
The IUCN Red List currently assesses it as Least Concern That category covers species that remain widespread and reasonably abundant in the wild.
What sound does the Yellow-breasted Chat make?
1 real field recording of the Yellow-breasted Chat can be played in the Songs & calls section on this page, credited to the recordist who captured it.
How large is the Yellow-breasted Chat's range?
The Yellow-breasted Chat has a mapped global range of about 6.2 million km².
Conservation
Every bird benefits from bird-safe windows, native plants, and keeping cats indoors. Small changes at home add up to real protection.
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Guides for this bird
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