Tennessee is home to a variety of birds, covered in unique colors and ranging in many different shapes and size. In this article I’ll be going over 9 unique yellow birds that can be found within Tennessee, so continue reading if you want to learn more about them.

• American Goldfinch 
• American Yellow Warbler
• Summer Tanager
• Yellow Breasted Chat
• Common Yellowthroat 
• Yellow Rumped Warbler 
• Evening Grosbeak 
• Lesser Goldfinch 
• Baltimore Oriole 

9 Yellow Birds In Tennessee

1. American Goldfinch (Spinus Tristis)

• Size: 11 – 13cm
• Weight: 11 – 20 grams
• Wingspan: 19 – 22cm

American goldfinches are year round residents all across Tennessee.

These finches are recognised by their yellow, white and black plumage. Their wings are black and white, their forehead is distinguished by the small black patch on it, their under tail is white with the remainder of the body a bright yellow color. Females are far less vibrant with hints of yellow however, are mostly a light brown color.

American goldfinches are found around the edges of forests and plains, around areas filled with brush and thistle plants.

These finches tend to mainly consume seeds that come from the daisy composite family, seeds from weeds, from trees like birches and elm trees, buds, the occasional insect, maple sap, and berries.

American goldfinches are known to live between 2 – 4 years in the wild and upto 9 years in captivity.

2. American Yellow Warbler (Setophaga Petechia)

• Size: 12.5 – 13cm
• Weight: 8 – 16 grams
• Wingspan: 16 – 22cm

You’ll find American yellow warblers in the majority of Tennessee when breeding but they will use most of the state’s Western region as a migratory passage. 

American Yellow Warblers are recognised by their yellow plumage with streaks of brown on their feathers and back. The males have a few more patterns to their plumage but, both the males and females are mostly yellow in color.

As for the habitats in which these little avians tend to spend the majority of their time, it would be bushes, swamp edges, streams, and gardens.

Yellow warblers tend to consume insects and berries with 2/3 of their diet mostly consisting of small insects like caterpillars,
beetles, damselflies, treehoppers, and more.

These little warblers are known to live upto 10 years although most warblers don’t live nearly as long as that. Often a warblers will live closer to 2 – 5 years in the wild as opposed to the full 10.

3. Summer Tanager (Piranga Rubra)

• Size: 15 – 18cm
• Weight: 25 – 35 grams
• Wingspan: 23 – 28cm

Summer tanagers can be found in Tennessee throughout their breeding season, which would typically encompass the spring and summer months. 

Female summer tanagers are small, bright and yellow birds. Their male counterparts are completely red which shows the significant sexual dimorphism between the 2 genders.

You’ll find these birds hanging around open wooded areas, especially in areas with oaks. 

As for what these tanagers eat, it includes mostly bees and wasps but they will occasionally go for smaller fruits and berries in bushes or trees.

These little birds are known to live between 3 – 5 years in the wild.

4. Yellow Breasted Chat (Icteria Virens)

• Size: 17 – 19cm
• Weight: 20 – 34 grams
• Wingspan: 23 – 27cm

These yellow breasted chats can be found all throughout Tennessee in their late spring and summer breeding season.

Yellow breasted chats are recognised by their gray/greenish back, wings and forehead, bright yellow chest and white/grayish underside of their lower half.

These avians like to spend the majority of their time within thickets among other dense grassy environments where bushes, shrubs and clearcuts are present.

As for the type of food these yellow breasted avians eat, they include small insects like bees, wasps, mayflies, grasshoppers, katydids, caterpillars, spiders among others small variants along with the smaller fruits and berries.

Yellow breasted chats also tend to live for around 5 – 8 years in the wild.

5. Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis Trichas)

• Size: 11 – 14cm
• Weight: 11 – 15 grams
• Wingspan: 15 – 19cm

You’ll find common yellowthroats in Tennessee when they breed. This will generally be within the spring and summer months.

Common yellowthroats are recognised by their mostly light brown/dirty yellow plumage from their head to tail whilst their throat is a bright yellow color. Females are mostly yellow with small elements of yellow on their tail and chin whilst males have more elements of black on their face.

As for where you can find these yellowthroats, they can be located around swamps, marshes, wet thickets, edges where they will often breed within wet marshes as well. They also nest within briars, moist brushy places, tangles of rank weeds and shrubbery along streams and overgrown fields.

Common yellowthroats are known to eat smaller insects like ants, spiders, and beetles along with seeds and smaller fruits like berries.

These avians can live for around 11 years in the wild.

6. Yellow Rumped Warbler (Setophaga Coronata)

• Size: 12 – 14cm
• Weight: 12 – 13 grams
• Wingspan: 19 – 23cm

Yellow rumped warblers are non-breeding residents all across Tennessee, meaning you’ll find them in the state throughout fall and winter.

These warblers are recognised by their gray and black wings, tail, back, and head with a black mask like stroke across the eye, with yellow elements on the upper end of the wing, on the top and around the upper breast area. Females tend to be a  gray/brown color whilst males are a little more vibrant.

Yellow rumped warblers are often found around coniferous forests, especially during the breeding season whilst in winter they can be found in open areas with fruiting shrubs.

As for what they eat, it includes insects and berries where the insects are caterpillars, wasps, grasshoppers, gnats, aphids, beetles, and spiders with the berries including bayberry, juniper, wax myrtle, poison ivy, and others.

Warblers are known to live upto 10 years in the wild.

7. Evening Grosbeak (Coccothraustes Vespertinus)

• Size: 16 – 22cm
• Weight: 50 – 60 grams
• Wingspan: 30 – 36cm

Evening grosbeaks can be found all across Tennessee in their fall and winter non-breeding months. 

These grosbeaks are recognised by their yellow, black and white plumage where their belly and forehead is yellow, with their wings a black and white color. Females are a mostly cream/gray color with elements of yellow around the neck area.

These birds can be found in habitats such as coniferous and mixed forests where they’re most often associated with spruce and fir in northern forest. 

As for what evening grosbeaks mostly eat sunflower seeds among other seeds, berries, and buds of trees and shrubs—especially maples.

Evening grosbeaks are known to live for around 15 years.

8. Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus Psaltria)

• Size: 9 – 12cm
• Weight: 8 – 11.5 grams
• Wingspan: 20 – 22cm

Lesser goldfinches can be found in all of Tennessee on a year round basis. 

These finches are recognised by their black wings, back and upper head with the lower half of their body mostly yellow. A females plumage is similar but the darker elements are far duller.

Lesser goldfinches are often located in open brushy country, open woods, wooded streams, gardens that are generally semi-open as they like being around thickets and trees that are close to open weedy fields.

They are known to eat mostly seed with insects in the mix to make up for the protein where they specifically enjoy eating thistles, the buds on trees and berries too.

Lesser goldfinches tend to live for around 3 – 6 years in the wild and upto 10 years in captivity.

9. Baltimore Oriole (Icterus Galbula)

• Size: 15 –  20cm
• Weight: 28 – 43 grams
• Wingspan: 23 – 30cm

Baltimore orioles can be found breeding all throughout Tennessee in the spring and summer months. 

These orioles are recognised by their yellow, black and white plumage, their head and wings that are a black color, their breast and the underside of the tail yellow with a beak that’s black in color. Females are yellow too but, their head isn’t black like the males.

Baltimore orioles can be found within open deciduous woodlands where they will build their nests within American elms, cottonwoods, and maples. 

As for the types of food they eat, it includes a variety of small insects like ants, wasps. beetles, grasshoppers, flies among others, flower nectar and smaller fruits like berries. They also feed on sugar water found within feeders.

These orioles are known to live for around 11 years in the wild, which is actually on the longer side for birds of their size.