Plumages, Molts, and Structure

Golden-winged Warblers have 9 functional primaries, 9 secondaries (including 3 tertials), and 12 rectrices. No geographic variation in appearance or molt strategies has been reported. See Systematics for more information on the plumages resulting from hybridism with Blue-winged Warbler.

Following based primarily on detailed plumage descriptions of Dwight (Dwight 1900c Dwight, J., Jr. (1900). The sequence of plumages and moults of the passerine birds of New York. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 13:73–360. Close ), Ridgway (1902), Bent (1953), Roberts (1955), Oberholser (1974), Curson et al. (1994), Cramp and Perrins (1994), and Dunn and Garrett (1997); see Pyle (1997a) for age/sex-related criteria. Sexes show specific appearances in formative and subsequent plumages. Definitive Plumage is assumed following Second Prebasic Molt.

Natal Down

No information. Present May-Jun in nest, if present.

Juvenile (First Basic) Plumage

Present Jun-Aug. Upperparts grayish or brownish olive-green; wings and tail gray edged chiefly with bluish plumbeous gray, the coverts and tertials with olive-green; transocular streak dusky; underparts pale olive-yellow, throat dusky.

Formative Plumage

"First Basic" or "Basic I" plumage of Pyle (1997a) and previous authors. Probably present Sep-Aug (Sep-Mar of a Prealternate Molt is present; see above). Males and females similar to Definitive Basic plumages of each sex but plumage averages slightly duller; white spots in rectrices average smaller and less distinct; chin often mottled white and throat sometimes mottled slightly with white in males. Further distinguished from Definitive Basic Plumage by contrasts in wings between formative secondary coverts and juvenile primary coverts and remiges, which are increasingly washed brownish and worn through spring and the first summer, the juvenile outer primaries and rectrices also averaging more pointed and tapered..

First And Definitive Alternate Plumages

Probably not present but would be found in Mar-Aug if so. Appearances would be similar to those of Formative and Definitive Basic Plumages, respectively.

Definitive Basic Plumage

Probably present Sep-Aug (Sep-Mar of a Prealternate Molt is present; see above). Male: Upperparts plumbeous gray veiled with olive-green edgings when fresh; crown bright lemon-yellow veiled posteriorly with olive when fresh; chin, jugulum, lores and auriculars jet-black veiled slightly with pale buff when fresh; submalar stripes (joining at angle of the chin) and supercilia white; outer half of median and greater coverts bright lemon-yellow, forming an almost continuous wing patch, lesser coverts plumbeous gray, edged with olive-green, remiges and rectrices gray, the outer 2-3 rectrices with variably distinct white patches, decreasing in size proximally; underparts grayish white, tinged tallow when fresh. Female: Similar to male but crown infused with olive; upperparts washed greenish; black of lores, auriculars, and head replaced with dusky; submalar stripes grayish; yellow edging to greater and median coverts thinner, resulting in duller and less-full wing patch; white patches in outer rectrices average smaller and less distinct. Appearance of both sexes duller in Sep-Dec but become brighter by Mar-Aug through wearing of the buff edgings of the black areas, the olive edgings of the upperparts, and the yellow tinge to the underparts. Definitive Basic Plumage of each sex further distinguished from Formative Plumage by uniformly basic wing feathers, lacking brown wash, and broader and more truncated basic outer primaries and rectrices, the latter averaging larger and more distinct white spots.

Molt and plumage terminology follows Humphrey and Parkes (1959) as modified by Howell et al. (2003, 2004). Golden-winged Warbler probably exhibits a Complex Basic Strategy (cf. Howell et al. 2003, Howell 2010), including complete prebasic molts and a partial preformative molt but no prealternate molts (Stone 1896; Dwight 1900c Dwight, J., Jr. (1900). The sequence of plumages and moults of the passerine birds of New York. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 13:73–360. Close ; Oberholser 1974; Curson et al. 1994; Dunn and Garrett 1997; Pyle 1997a, 1997b; Fig. 7). Definitive molt cycle commences with Second Prebasic Molt.

Prejuvenile (First Prebasic) Molt

Complete, May-Jul, in the nest. Juvenile remiges emerge from their sheaths on the sixth day (Will 1986 Will, T. C. (1986). The behavioral ecology of species replacement: Blue-winged and Golden-winged warblers in Michigan. Ph. D. diss., Univ. Michigan, Ann Arbor. Close ). Otherwise, no information on timing or sequence of pennaceous feather irruption and development.

Preformative Molt

"First prebasic" or "Prebasic I" molt of Pyle (1997a) and previous authors. Partial, Jun-Aug, on or near breeding grounds. Usually includes all secondary coverts and sometimes (20-50% of birds) the greater alula but no other flight feathers.

First And Definitive Prealternate Molts

A limited Prealternate Molt of some head feathers reported possibly to occur in some birds (Pyle 1997a), likely in both first-cycle and older individuals if so, but confirmation required.

Definitive Prebasic Molt

Complete, Jun-Aug, on or near breeding grounds, although study is needed on the relationship between breeding territories and molting grounds. Primaries are replaced distally (p1 to p9), secondaries replaced proximally from s1 and proximally and distally from the central tertial (s8), and rectrices probably replaced distally (r1 to r6) on each side of tail, with some variation in sequence possible.

Bill

Pinkish buff in juveniles, becoming dusky in first fall and black thereafter.

Iris

Dark, perhaps fuscous to burnt umber

Legs And Feet

Pinkish buff in juveniles, becoming dusky in first fall, Thereafter legs dark grayish brown to fuscous. Palms of feet (adults) olive to sulphur yellow (JLC).

See Table 2. Males average longer in wing length than females (but note significant overlap); no difference in body mass. No geographic variation in body size has been noted.