Worm-eating Warbler

June 30, 2026

Though called Worm-eating Warbler (Helmitheros vermivorum) their diet doesn’t include what we would refer to as “worms”, but does include spiders, grasshoppers, beetles, caterpillars, and slugs.

Breeding season finds them in deciduous forests in the eastern United States. Their nest is built on the ground, looking like an open cup, among dead leaves. There are several other species of new-world warblers that also build their nests on the ground, including Black-and-white Warblers (Mniotilta varia), Ovenbirds (Serious aurocapilla), Northern Waterthrushes (Parkesia noveboracensis), Louisiana Waterthrushes (Parkesia motacilla), Palm Warblers (Setophaga palmarum), and Kentucky Warblers (Geothlypis formosa).

Surprising to see that there are so many similar little birds that build nests on the ground.

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Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.

2 thoughts on “Worm-eating Warbler”

    1. Hi Leigh! We certainly are in different parts of “the wild world of nature” don’t you think?!!
      I’m breathing a sigh of relief at this moment. I managed to get a computer virus a few days ago. Thank goodness my son was able to guide me through a rescue mission to bring things back to life. Poor computer is still limping a bit, and still frustrating me, but things could have been much worse!!
      So very glad we found each other’s blogs!!
      Bren

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