Wilson's Warbler

Cardellina pusilla

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
FamilyParulidae (New World Warblers)
GenusCardellina
SpeciesCardellina pusilla (Wilson's Warbler)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Great Smoky Mountains National Park

4 Verified sightings at Great Smoky Mountains National Park From 2019 to 2026

30,686 Verified sightings across all 54 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Wilson's Warbler

Wilson's warbler (Cardellina pusilla) is a small New World warbler. It is greenish above and yellow below, with rounded wings and a long, slim tail. The male has a black crown patch; depending on the subspecies, that mark is reduced or absent in the female. It breeds across Canada and south through the western United States, and winters from Mexico south through much of Central America. It is a very rare vagrant to western Europe.

Wilson's warbler was formally described in 1811 by the ornithologist Alexander Wilson under the binomial name Muscicapa pusilla. The type locality is southern New Jersey. The species was moved to the genus Wilsonia by the naturalist and ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1838. Zoologist Thomas Nuttall moved it to Sylvania in 1840, and by 1845, many authors included it in Myiodioctes. In 1899, the American Ornithological Union returned the species to Wilsonia. The species is currently assigned to the genus Cardellina. The genus name Cardellina is a diminutive of the Italian dialect Cardella, a name for the European goldfinch, and the specific epithet pusilla means "very small".

There are three recognized subspecies: C. p. pusilla was... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Cardellina canadensis

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Setophaga americana

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Setophaga citrina

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Setophaga virens

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Setophaga coronata

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Mniotilta varia

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Seiurus aurocapilla

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Setophaga dominica

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Setophaga pinus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Parkesia motacilla

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Setophaga caerulescens

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Geothlypis trichas

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Irazú Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~70%
2	La Tigra National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	~60%
3	Poás Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~50%
4	Los Quetzales National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~50%
5	Volcán Barú National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~50%
6	El Triunfo	🇲🇽 Mexico	~50%
7	Celaque National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	~40%
8	Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~30%
9	Katmai National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~30%
10	Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~30%
11	Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca	🇲🇽 Mexico	~30%
12	Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~30%
13	Wrangell-St. Elias National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~30%
14	Cañón del Sumidero National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	~20%
15	Cusuco National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	~20%
16	Kenai Fjords National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~20%
17	Chirripó National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~20%
18	Gros Morne National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	~20%
19	Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	~20%
20	La Amistad International Park (Panama)	🇵🇦 Panama	~20%
21	Denali National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~20%
22	Lago de Yojoa	🇭🇳 Honduras	~10%
23	Yosemite National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
24	Point Pelee National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	~10%
25	Saguaro National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
26	Cabo Pulmo National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	~10%
27	Arenal Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
28	El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~10%
29	Tenorio Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
30	Joshua Tree National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
31	Braulio Carrillo National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
32	Bahía de Loreto National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
33	Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary	🇧🇿 Belize	<5%
34	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	<5%
35	Rincón de la Vieja National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
36	Isle Royale National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
37	Cape Breton Highlands National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	<5%
38	Chagres National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
39	Pico Bonito National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
40	Acadia National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
41	Manuel Antonio National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
42	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
43	Shenandoah National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
44	Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
45	Wood Buffalo National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	Insufficient data
46	Biotopo Cerro Cahuí	🇬🇹 Guatemala	Insufficient data
47	Calakmul Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
48	Marino Ballena National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
49	Las Baulas Marine National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
50	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
51	Tortuguero National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
52	Bastimentos Island National Marine Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
53	Farallones de Cali National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
54	Carara National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data

← Back to Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Wilson's Warbler

About the Wilson's Warbler

Recent sightings of Wilson's Warbler in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Closest Relatives at Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Canada Warbler

Northern Parula

Hooded Warbler

Black-throated Green Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Black-and-white Warbler

Ovenbird

Yellow-throated Warbler

Pine Warbler

Louisiana Waterthrush

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Common Yellowthroat

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found