By Judy Jones 
Common Yellowthroat Geothylpis trichas
The male of this widespread warbler is easy to identify, he has a black mask with a yellow throat and chest. The female is usually lacking the mask but is similar in color being pale olive above and has a light yellow throat. It is absent only in the dry Southwest during the summer, but can be found over much of the United States and southern Canada. Its clear call "wichety, wichety, wichety" makes this masked warbler easy to identify by ear. Most Common Yellowthroats have finished migrating through the Texas Panhandle by mid October. They winter in the extreme south in the United States as well as Mexico and Central America. They are permanent residents in Florida and in the southern part of the Gulf States. Some experts say that they are the only warbler to nest in marshes.