#mniotilta

[herpsandbirds]

Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia), family Parulidae, order Passeriformes, Eastern U.S.

photograph by Robert Cook

[birdblues]

Black-and-white Warbler

[proton-wobbler]

Warbler Showdown!

All members of the New World Warbler family, Parulidae, fight for their chance to be called Top Warbler*! This will be a big mess of rounds and brackets, broken up by genus mostly. There's also an extra bracket of "used-to-be warblers"- any species which used to be included in Parulidae before various studies determined their place outside of this family group. (*of the Americas)

A summary of the brackets below and fully listed out at: Round 1

Brackets 1 & 2: Setophaga

Coming in at a whopping 36 species (depending on who you ask), Setophaga has been broken up over two brackets to help deal with the amount. For the special case of Yellow-rumped Warbler, it will be split into three subspecies, rather than being represented as a single, confusingly diverse species. These warblers are typically the most well-known in the states, especially during spring migration.

Bracket 3: Myiothlypis

The first group of a split South American genus. There are more species in this genus (seventeen total), which is why it comes first.

Bracket 4: Basileuterus

The second of the South American split- with only twelve species compared to the eighteen above.

Bracket 5: Geothlypis

The yellowthroats! All members of this species have bright yellow throats and underbodies, and are often associated with marshy, reed-y ponds.

Bracket 6: Myioborus

The redstarts! Well, the American redstarts. The genus name actually means 'whitestart', and sometimes these species are referred to as such, but for my sources they all follow the 'redstart' name.

Bracket 7: Leiothlypis & Cardellina

Our first combo bracket. Leiothlypis are generally more dull than the Cardellina, so they'll be fighting within their own genus at first before being mix-matched to fight each other in the second round.

Bracket 8: Vermivora, Parkesia, & Oreothlypis

Three genuses, each with two extant species. The Bachman's Warbler, recently declared extinct, will still be included this bracket, though, so Vermivora will be represented by three species.

Bracket 9: Odd Ones Out

There are eight warblers who stand alone, each in their own genus. This is probably the most diverse bracket, then, with a variety of habitats and ranges represented within.

Bracket 10: "Y'all don't even go here!"/Not-"Warblers"

At one point or another, each of these ten birds was considered a part of the Parulidae family. They now span six families, with some birds being the sole member of their new family. Changing taxonomy is familiar amongst birders, and including these not-quite warblers pays homage to that.

The tentative schedule is one bracket per week, starting in early November. My queue will likely be filled with warblers before that, though :)

Edit: forgot to mention, but Birds of the World will be my info source throughout the poll, but as it is behind a paywall it will not be linked to each post. It functions as a sort of encyclopedia for all birds and is managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, with its own citations of scientific papers when applicable. I personally dont recommend it for casual enjoyers, but it has been really good for gathering concrete information to share with y'all via this page.

[dendroica]

Black-and-white warbler at Flint Hills National Wildlife Refuge (via USFWS Mountain-Prairie)

One of the earliest arriving migrant warblers. Black-and-white warblers act more like nuthatches than warblers, foraging for hidden insects in the bark of trees by creeping up, down, and around branches and trunks. Photo: Tom Koerner/USFWS

[birdblues]

Black-and-white Warbler

[hyacynthus]

Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)

(Note: this photo was taken during a class on bird banding, otherwise it is illegal to handle wild birds!)

[dendroica]

Bird of the Week: Black-and-white Warbler

The Black-and-white Warbler is the only member of the genus Mniotilta, which means “moss-plucking” and refers to the bird’s habit of probing for insects. One of the first migrants to arrive on breeding grounds, the song of Black-and-white Warbler—reminiscent of a rusty wheel turning—is an early sign of spring.

Black-and-white Warblers breed as far north as northern Canada and winter as far south as northern South America. Wintering birds benefit from several areas protected by ABC and in-country partners, including Buenaventura in Ecuador and the Blue-billed Curassow (El Paujil) Reserve in Colombia.

This warbler behaves like a nuthatch, creeping up and down tree trunks and along limbs while probing between bark fissures in search of insects and grubs. With unusually long hind toes and claws, the birds are well adapted to climbing on tree bark.

These “early birds” arrive on their breeding territories in April. Surprisingly, their nests are usually built on the ground—at the base of a tree, rock, stump, or fallen log, or under a bush or shrub.

Black-and-white Warblers are still common, though Breeding Bird Surveys indicate a slow and gradual decline in population over the past 50 years. This biggest threat to this forest species is habitat fragmentation, which also takes a toll on Cerulean, Kentucky, Worm-eating, and Blackpoll Warblers.

As nocturnal migrants, Black-and-white Warblers are a frequent victim of collisions with glass, towers, and wind turbines; as insectivores, they are vulnerable to pesticide poisoning.

(via American Bird Conservancy)