CreatureData

Prothonotary warbler

Protonotaria citrea (Boddaert, 1783)

LCLeast Concernsongbirds

The prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) is a species in the family Parulidae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 14.3 g to 16.5 g and live up to 6.49 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea)
Photo: Bettina Arrigoni · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the prothonotary warbler

Weight
14.3 g – 16.5 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
6.49 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
8.1 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
forestsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
13 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
4.95src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
12 monthssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1.5src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Migratorysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Photos of the prothonotary warbler

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea)
Bettina Arrigoni · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Where does the prothonotary warbler live?

Not recorded

What is the prothonotary warbler?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. It is named for its plumage, which resembles the yellow robes once worn by papal clerks (named prothonotaries) in the Roman Catholic Church.

The prothonotary warbler is the only member of the genus Protonotaria and the only eastern warbler that nests in natural or artificial cavities.

These warblers often move with quick, jerky, movements and will even crawl upside down on sticks or trees. During the spring they are often seen in wetlands gathering nesting material, or food, for their mate.

From the Wikipedia article “Prothonotary warbler” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Prothonotary_warbler&oldid=1380701244), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

What does the prothonotary warbler sound like?

Tom Austin · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Is the prothonotary warbler endangered?

The prothonotary warbler is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.

How is the prothonotary warbler classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderPasseriformes
  5. familyParulidae
  6. genusProtonotaria
  7. SpeciesProtonotaria citrea (Boddaert, 1783)

Synonyms Motacilla citrea, Motacilla protonotarius

Other names and names in other languages (36)
  • bosquerola protonotàriaCatalan
  • lesňáček zlatýCzech
  • telor melyn y gwerniWelsh
  • Blommegul SangerDanish
  • ZitronenwaldsängerGerman
  • ora parulioEsperanto
  • Chipe doradoSpanish
  • Cigüita Cabeza AmarillaSpanish
  • Reinita CabecidoradaSpanish
  • Reinita MangleraSpanish
  • Reinita protonotariaSpanish
  • õõnesäälikEstonian
  • kolokerttuliFinnish
  • Paruline orangéeFrench
  • zlatnoglava sjeničicaCroatian
  • Parula protonotariaItalian
  • オウゴンアメリカムシクイJapanese
  • selbijninvokslicpiLojban
  • protonotarijaLithuanian
  • notāra ķauķisLatvian
  • citroenzangerDutch
  • plommeparulaNorwegian
  • Chipe LamoenchiPapiamento
  • Chipe ProtonotarioPapiamento
  • bursztynkaPolish
  • Mariquita-protonáriaPortuguese
  • mariquita-protonotáriaPortuguese
  • Лимонный певунRussian
  • Лимонная червеедкаRussian
  • horárik pomarančovýSlovak
  • Protonotarska cvrkutarkaSerbian
  • gyllenskogssångareSwedish
  • Protonoter ÖtleğeniTurkish
  • пісняр жовтийUkrainian
  • 蓝翅黄森莺Chinese
  • 藍翅黃森鶯Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the prothonotary warbler

Other species in the same family Parulidae.

LC, Least Concern
Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla)

Ovenbird

Seiurus aurocapilla

Parulidae

CompareProthonotary warbler vs Mangrove warblerProthonotary warbler vs OvenbirdProthonotary warbler vs Common yellowthroatProthonotary warbler vs Black-and-white warbler

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the prothonotary warbler?

An adult prothonotary warbler weighs 14.3 g – 16.5 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the prothonotary warbler endangered?

The prothonotary warbler is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the prothonotary warbler live?

The prothonotary warbler has a recorded lifespan of 6.49 years.

What kind of animal is the prothonotary warbler?

The prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) belongs to the family Parulidae in the order Passeriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/prothonotary-warbler

MLA

“Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/prothonotary-warbler.

BibTeX
@misc{prothonotary_warbler_2026,
  title = {Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/prothonotary-warbler},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}