Blue-winged Warbler bags large caterpillar

 

A Blue-winged Warbler (Vermivora cyanoptera) foraging and singing in an American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana). I got to spend about 15 minutes watching the colorful animal hunting, which is entertaining. Blue-winged Warblers are quite active when feeding, and suggest chickadees as they flit through the foliage, dangling acrobatically to snare insects. I was witness to an impressive bag: a very large prominent moth caterpillar, which is in the second image. Unfortunately, no clear shots could be had of this operation. The warbler took the victim to a nearby horizontal branch and proceeded to beat the larva violently by whipping it into the twig. When the cat was suitably mushy, it quickly swallowed the lepidopteran stew. A photo of the warbler with its victim is below. Shawnee State Forest, Scioto County, Ohio, May 7, 2025.