Mourning warbler

Last updated

Mourning warbler
Oporornis philadelphiaAAP100CB1.jpg
Mourning warbler by Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Parulidae
Genus: Geothlypis
Species:
G. philadelphia
Binomial name
Geothlypis philadelphia
(Wilson, 1810)
Oporornis philadelphia map.svg
Range of G. philadelphia
  Breeding range
  Wintering range
Synonyms

Oporornis philadelphia

The mourning warbler (Geothlypis philadelphia) is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Mourning warblers are native to eastern and central North America as well as some countries in Central America. [2] They are neotropical migrants and tend to be found in dense second growth forests. [3] They are under the Wood-warbler category, which consists of arboreal and terrestrial colorful passerines. Wood warblers are in the order Passeriformes, which are perching birds including more than half of all bird species, and the family Parulidae which also includes the Common Yellowthroat, Black and White Warbler, Nashville Warbler, ovenbird, and American Redstart. They are very similar to the MacGillivray's Warbler in appearance, especially in females and immature birds, but their breeding range does not overlap into the west. [4]

Contents

The "mourning" in this bird's name refers to the male's hood, thought to resemble a mourning veil.

Identification

Mourning warblers are small songbird with yellow underparts, olive-green upperparts, a thin pointed bill and pink legs. Adult males have a gray hood, black lores and a black patch on the throat and breast. In the fall, this pattern becomes less bright and harder to distinguish from similar species; however they never have a broken eye ring. [5] Females and immatures are gray-brown on the head with an incomplete eye-ring. They have a yellow-gray throat with a brown or olive tint to their breast. Both sexes can range from 10–15 cm (3.9-5.9 in) in length and 11-13 g (0.4-0.5 oz) in weight. Their wingspan is 18 cm (7.1 in). [5] [3] Other than the MacGillivray’s Warbler, similar species include the Connecticut warblers which have a complete eye ring, not to be confused with a broken eye ring seen on immature Mourning warblers. Immature Connecticut warblers also have a whiter chest compared to the yellow chest on immature Mourning warblers. Nashville warblers are also commonly confused; however they have a yellow throat unlike the black or grey throats of Mourning warblers, females have a grey back, and they are smaller and less active than Mourning warblers. [5]

Distribution and habitat

Mourning warblers have breeding ground in southern Canada, and are commonly seen during migration in the central and eastern United States, Belieze, Bonaire, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Panama, and other Central American Islands. [1] These birds migrate to Central America and northern South America. Mourning warblers are low or ground nesters, and prefer disturbed forests with a thick under-story and covered canopy. In the winter they prefer wet lowland habitat with dense vegetation.

Behavior and ecology

Geothlypis philadelphia 1.jpg

Diet

Mourning warblers forage low in vegetation, sometimes catching insects in flight. These birds mainly eat insects, also some plant material including fruiting bodies from the Cecropia tree in winter. Their diet is not well documented but also includes insect larvae and spiders that they pick from the branches of shrubs. They are also known to remove the legs and wings of the insects before consuming.

Breeding

Mourning warblers breed in southern Canada. Their breeding habitat is thickets and semi-open areas with dense shrubs across Canada east of the Rockies and the northeastern United States. The nest is an open cup placed on the ground in a well-concealed location under thick shrubs or other vegetation. Their nest is usually made out of grass, leaves and bark and lined with roots or other thin material. [6]

Mourning warblers typically lay 2-5 eggs, which are white or speckled brown and black in appearance. Incubation is 12 days long and both adult males and females utilize a distraction technique of pretending to have broken wings to distract predators from their nest. Mourning warblers have young with gray tufts on their head and red mouths. Adult females are also known consume their eggs after their young hatch. The number of days for young to fledge is 7–9. [2]

Vocalization

The song of this bird is a bright repetitive warble. The warble consists of rolling phrases that sound that typically lower in volume at the end and can sound like "chirry, chirry, chirry, chorry, chorry." The call is a sharp chip. There are usually two different pitched calls, with one higher than the harsh chip. [5]

Conservation

According to the North American Breeding Bird Survey, Mourning Warbler populations have declined by about 43% in the last 50 years. [7] However, they are still categorized as a species of least concern with 17 million estimated as a global breeding population by Partners in Flight. [1] As they have a preference for disturbed forests, they may be benefitting from human development that may be negatively effecting the habitats of other bird species. [5]

Related Research Articles

Bullocks oriole Species of bird

Bullock's oriole is a small New World blackbird. At one time, this species and the Baltimore oriole were considered to be a single species, the northern oriole. This bird is named after William Bullock, an English amateur naturalist.

Veery Species of bird

The veery is a small North American thrush species, a member of a group of closely related and similar species in the genus Catharus, also including the gray-cheeked thrush, Bicknell's thrush, Swainson's thrush, and hermit thrush. Alternate names for this species include Wilson's thrush and tawny thrush. Up to six subspecies exist, which are grouped into the eastern veery, the western veery or willow thrush, and the Newfoundland veery.

Philadelphia vireo Species of bird

The Philadelphia vireo is a small North American songbird in the vireo family (Vireonidae). "Vireo" is a Latin word referring to a green migratory bird, perhaps the female golden oriole, possibly the European greenfinch. The specific philadelphicus is for the city of Philadelphia.

Cape May warbler Species of bird

The Cape May warbler is a species of New World warbler. It breeds in northern North America. Its breeding range spans all but the westernmost parts of southern Canada, the Great Lakes region, and New England. It is migratory, wintering in the West Indies. This species is a very rare vagrant to western Europe, with two records in Britain as of October 2013. The English name refers to Cape May, New Jersey, where George Ord collected the specimen later described by Alexander Wilson. This species was not recorded again in Cape May for another 100 years, although it is now known as an uncommon migrant there.

Chestnut-sided warbler Species of bird

The chestnut-sided warbler is a New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America and in southern Canada westwards to the Canadian Prairies. They also breed in the Great Lakes region and in the eastern United States.

Bay-breasted warbler Species of bird

The bay-breasted warbler is a small species of songbird in the New World warbler family, Parulidae. It is one of thirty-four species in the diverse genus Setophaga. Like all songbirds, or passerines, the species is classified in the order Passeriformes.

Common yellowthroat Species of bird

The common yellowthroat is a New World warbler. In the U.S. Midwest, it is also known as the yellow bandit. It is an abundant breeder in North America, ranging from southern Canada to central Mexico. The genus name Geothlypis is from Ancient Greek geo, "ground", and thlupis, an unidentified small bird; thlypis is often used in the scientific names of New World warblers. The specific trichas is also from Greek; trikhas is a kind of thrush, the word being derived from trikhos, "hair".

Tennessee warbler Species of bird

The Tennessee warbler is a New World warbler that breeds in eastern North America and winters in southern Central America, the Caribbean, and northern South America. The specific name peregrina is from Latin peregrinus "wanderer".

Black-throated green warbler Species of bird

The black-throated green warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.

Pine warbler Species of bird

The pine warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.

Prairie warbler Species of bird

The prairie warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.

Connecticut warbler Species of bird

The Connecticut warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.

Nashville warbler Species of bird

The Nashville warbler is a small songbird in the New World warbler family, found in North and Central America. It breeds in parts of the northern and western United States and southern Canada, and migrates to winter in southern California and Texas, Mexico, and the north of Central America. It has a gray head and a green back, and its underparts are yellow and white.

Yellow-breasted chat Species of bird

The yellow-breasted chat is a large songbird found in North America, and is the only member of the family Icteriidae. It was once a member of the New World warbler family, but in 2017, the American Ornithological Society moved it to its own family. Its placement is not definitely resolved.

Orange-crowned warbler Species of bird

The orange-crowned warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.

Worm-eating warbler Species of bird

The worm-eating warbler is a small New World warbler that breeds in the Eastern United States and migrates to southern Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America for the winter.

Townsends warbler Species of bird

Townsend's warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.

Kentucky warbler Species of bird

The Kentucky warbler is a small species of New World warbler. It is a sluggish and heavy warbler with a short tail, preferring to spend most of its time on or near the ground, except when singing.

MacGillivrays warbler Species of bird

MacGillivray's warbler is a species of New World warbler. These birds are sluggish and heavy warblers, preferring to spend most of their time on, or near the ground, except when singing.

Masked yellowthroat Species of bird

The masked yellowthroat is a New World warbler. It has a number of separate resident breeding populations in Central and South America, some of which may be considered to form separate species.

References

  1. 1 2 3 BirdLife International (2016). "Geothlypis philadelphia". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22721824A94733160. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22721824A94733160.en . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 Gough, G.A., Sauer, J.R. Patuxent Bird Glossary. 1997. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/Infocenter/Glossary/glossary.html
  3. 1 2 "Mourning Warbler Life History, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology". www.allaboutbirds.org. Retrieved 2018-04-04.
  4. ↑ North American Bird Conservation Initiative. 2014. The State of the Birds 2014 Report. US Department of Interior, Washington, DC, USA
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Pitocchelli, Jay (2019). Rodewald, P. G. (ed.). "Mourning Warbler (Geothlypis philadelphia)". Birds of North America Online. Ithaca, NY, USA: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. doi:10.2173/bna.mouwar.03. S2CID   91572731 . Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  6. ↑ Lutmerding, J. A. and A. S. Love. Longevity records of North American birds. Version 2015.2. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Bird Banding Laboratory 2015.
  7. ↑ Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, J. E. Fallon, K. L. Pardieck, Jr. Ziolkowski, D. J. and W. A. Link. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, results and analysis 1966-2013 (Version 1.30.15). USGS Patuxtent Wildlife Research Center 2014b. Available from http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/.


}

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.