Range.—Southern Canada to Guatemala.
Breeding range.—The eastern Nashville and the western Nashville (formerly the Calaveras) warblers breed north to southern British Columbia (Tahsis Canal and Beaver Creek, Vancouver Island; Pemberton, Lillooet, and Revelstoke); northern Idaho (Clark Fork); northwestern Montana (Fortine); east-central Saskatchewan (Cumberland House); southern Manitoba (Duck Mountain, Lake St. Martin, and Hillside Beach); central Ontario (Casummit Lake, Lake Nipigon, and Lake Abitibi); and southern Quebec (Lake Baskatong, Quebec, Kamouraska, Mingan, and Natashquan River). East to southeastern Quebec (Natashquan River and the Magdalen Islands); and Nova Scotia (Baddeck, Halifax, and Barrington). South to Nova Scotia (Barrington); Maine (Ellsworth and Bath); northeastern Massachusetts (Haverhill and Beverly); southern Connecticut (Norwich); northern New Jersey (Moe and Beaufort Mountain); northeastern Pennsylvania (Dingman’s Ferry, Mount Riga, and Highland Falls); northern West Virginia (Stony River Dam, Canaan Mountain, and Cranesville Swamp); northeastern Ohio (Pymatuming Lake); southern Michigan (Ann Arbor); northeastern Illinois (Deerfield); southern Wisconsin (Lake Koshkonong); central Minnesota (Onamia and Detroit Lakes); reported to breed in northeastern Nebraska but no specific records; northwestern South Dakota (Cave Hills); northern Idaho (Falcon); northwestern Oregon (Powder River Mountains, probably); probably western Nevada (Lake Tahoe); and south-central California (Greenhorn Mountains). West to central and western California (Greenhorn Mountains, Paicines, and Yreka); western Oregon (Pinehurst, Gold Hill, Depoe Bay, and Portland); western Washington (Mount Adams, Tacoma, and Blaine); and southwestern British Columbia (Friendly Cove and Tahsis Canal).
There are several records of the occurrence of this species in spring migration in southern Saskatchewan (Regina, East End, and Maple Creek); and in fall at Lake Kimawan, Alberta, west of Lesser Slave Lake. These records imply the existence of a breeding range north of any yet discovered.
Winter range.—The Nashville warbler and races are found in winter north to central Durango (Chacala); western Nuevo León (Monterrey) and southern Texas (Somerset and Matagorda County). East to southern Texas (Matagorda County, Rio Hondo, and Brownsville); eastern Puebla (Metlatoyuca); western Veracruz (Jalapa); Chiapas (Chicharras); and central Guatemala (Barillos, Panajachel, and San Lucas). South to Guatemala. West to western Guatemala (San Lucas and Sacapulas); Oaxaca (Tehuantepec); Guerrero (Acapulco); Colima (Manzanillo); and Durango (Durango and Chacla).
The Nashville warbler has been recorded as wintering occasionally in southern Florida, but in view of the extreme rarity of the species in southeastern United States it seems best to consider the record hypothetical until specimens are collected.
Like other species that winter regularly in the Tropics, the Nashville warbler can resist low temperatures as long as food is available. Evidence of this is seen in the daily presence of one in a garden in New York City from December 16, 1918, to January 9, 1919 (perhaps longer). Another was noted almost daily from January 1 to March 1, 1938, at a feeding table in Arlington, Va. The latter bird was caught and brought to the U. S. Biological Survey for confirmation of the identification, and was banded. On January 31, 1890, a specimen was picked up in Swampscott, Massachusetts, that had apparently been killed by a shrike about two weeks before.
The ranges as outlined apply to the entire species which includes two geographic races; the eastern Nashville warbler (V. r. ruficapilla) breeds from eastern Saskatchewan and Nebraska eastward; and the western Nashville warbler (V. r. ridgwayi) breeds west of the Rocky Mountains.
Migration.—Some early dates of spring arrival are: West Virginia—French Creek, April 23. District of Columbia—Washington, April 20. Pennsylvania—Beaver, April 25. New York—Canandaigua, April 25. Massachusetts—Taunton, April 24. Vermont—Rutland, April 27. Maine—Presque Isle, May 2. Quebec—Kamouraska, May 2. New Brunswick—Scotch Lake, May 8. Mississippi—Rosedale, April 26. Tennessee—Memphis, April 16. Kentucky—Bardstown, April 28. Indiana—Indianapolis, April 24. Ohio—Oberlin, April 19. Michigan—Ann Arbor, April 25. Ontario—Toronto, April 29. Texas—San Antonio, March 27. Arkansas—Delight, April 14. Missouri—St. Louis, April 21. Iowa—Davenport, April 26. Illinois—Chicago, April 25. Wisconsin—Madison, April 25. Minnesota—Red Wing, April 29. Manitoba—Winnipeg, May 2. Arizona—Tucson, April 6. Montana—Missoula, April 25. Idaho—Coeur d’Alene, April 29. California—Buena Park, March 3. Oregon—Prospect, April 20. Washington—Tacoma, April 23. British Columbia—Okanagan Landing, April 21.
Late dates of spring departure are: West Virginia—Wheeling, May 24. District of Columbia—Washington, May 20. Pennsylvania—Jeffersonville, May 20. Mississippi—Rosedale, May 6. Tennessee—Nashville, May 19. Kentucky—Bowling Green, May 19. Indiana—Richmond, June 1. Texas—Ingram, May 10. Arkansas—Monticello, May 9. Missouri—Columbia, May 28. Iowa—Grinnell, June 2. Illinois—Rockford, May 30. Kansas—Lake Quivira, May 21. Nebraska—Red Cloud, May 24. South Dakota—June 1. Arizona—Otero Canyon, Baboquivari Mountains, April 29. California—Cabezon, May 7.