The Yellow-breasted Chat is a unique and somewhat enigmatic bird in Oregon, often considered the "oddball" of the warbler family (and in fact, some taxonomists now place it in its own family, Icteriidae). They are a summer resident in Oregon, arriving in spring and departing for wintering grounds in Mexico and Central America in the fall. They are known for their skulking habits in dense thickets and their incredibly varied and often bizarre songs.

Male Yellow-breasted Chat in Oregon:
Size and Shape: The largest of what are commonly called "warblers" in North America. They are larger and bulkier than typical warblers, with a relatively long tail, a large head, and a fairly thick, heavy bill (almost vireo-like)
Coloration:
Underparts: The most striking feature is their bright, vivid lemon-yellow breast and throat. This yellow is very conspicuous.
Back: Their back, nape, and crown are a dull olive-green or grayish-olive.
Belly: The lower belly and undertail coverts are contrasting white.
Face: They have a distinctive facial pattern:
A grayish head.
A prominent, bold white eye-ring that often connects to the bill, giving them a "spectacled" appearance.
A distinct white malar stripe (or "mustache stripe") bordering the cheek, contrasting with the dark lore (area between the eye and bill).
Bill: A relatively stout, dark bill.
Behavior and Vocalizations: This is where males truly stand out. They are renowned for their incredibly loud, varied, and often comical song, which is a jumble of whistles, cackles, clucks, hoots, gurgles, rasps, and sometimes mimicry of other birds. Males sing persistently from dense thickets, but during the breeding season, they may emerge to sing from exposed perches or perform a peculiar, "butterfly-like" display flight with dangling legs and slow wingbeats, often singing while doing so. They are often heard much more than they are seen due to their skulking nature.

Female Yellow-breasted Chat in Oregon:
Size and Shape: Similar in size and shape to the male – large for a "warbler," with a relatively long tail and thick bill.
Coloration: Females resemble males but are generally duller in coloration.
Underparts: Their yellow breast and throat are present but are usually a paler, more washed-out yellow compared to the male's vibrant lemon-yellow.
Back: Their olive-green back is also typically duller.
Face: They have the same basic facial pattern as the male (grayish head, white eye-ring, white malar stripe), but these markings may be less bold or contrasting.
Belly: White lower belly.
Bill: Similar to the male's.
Behavior: Females are even more secretive than males and are rarely seen out in the open. They are much less vocal than males, particularly when not singing.

Habitat in Oregon:
Yellow-breasted Chats are summer residents in Oregon, arriving in late April to May. They prefer dense, brushy thickets, particularly along streams and rivers (riparian habitats), clearcuts, powerline corridors, and other areas with extensive shrub cover. In Oregon, they are uncommon to common in the interior Rogue and Umpqua Valleys and locally rare to uncommon in the Willamette Valley. They are also found in riparian areas of eastern Oregon along rivers like the Deschutes and John Day. Their reliance on these specific dense shrubland habitats makes them an Oregon Conservation Strategy Species in certain ecoregions.