WOOD-WARBLERS · Parulidae

2019 ◽  
pp. 288-301
Keyword(s):  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-26
Author(s):  
Clayton D Delancey ◽  
Kamal Islam ◽  
Gunnar R Kramer ◽  
Garrett J MacDonald ◽  
Alexander R Sharp ◽  
...  

AbstractCerulean Warblers (Setophaga cerulea) are among the fastest declining Nearctic-Neotropical migrant wood-warblers (Parulidae) in North America. Despite ongoing conservation efforts, little is known about their non-breeding distribution. In June 2016-2018, we deployed geolocators (n = 30) on adult male Cerulean Warblers in Indiana, USA, to track annual movements of individuals. Recovered geolocators (n = 4) showed that Cerulean Warblers occurred broadly throughout northern South America. Autumn migration lasted 44-71 days (n = 4), whereas spring migration lasted 37-41 days (n = 3). The average migration distance was 5268 km. During autumn migration, Cerulean Warblers made 1-4 stopovers (i.e., ≥2 days; n = 4) and 1-2 stopovers during spring migration (n = 3). When crossing the Gulf of Mexico during autumn migration, two birds stopped over after crossing, but not beforehand. Two others navigated through the Caribbean rather than crossing the Gulf of Mexico. During spring migration, one individual stopped after crossing, one individual stopped before crossing, and one individual stopped before and after crossing the Gulf of Mexico. No birds migrated through the Caribbean Islands during spring migration. These results represent novel information describing annual movements of individual Cerulean Warblers and will inform conservation efforts for this declining species.


2011 ◽  
Vol 279 (1728) ◽  
pp. 610-618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin M. Winger ◽  
Irby J. Lovette ◽  
David W. Winkler

Seasonal migration in birds is known to be highly labile and subject to rapid change in response to selection, such that researchers have hypothesized that phylogenetic relationships should neither predict nor constrain the migratory behaviour of a species. Many theories on the evolution of bird migration assume a framework that extant migratory species have evolved repeatedly and relatively recently from sedentary tropical or subtropical ancestors. We performed ancestral state reconstructions of migratory behaviour using a comprehensive, well-supported phylogeny of the Parulidae (the ‘wood-warblers’), a large family of Neotropical and Nearctic migratory and sedentary songbirds, and examined the rates of gain and loss of migration throughout the Parulidae. Counter to traditional hypotheses, our results suggest that the ancestral wood-warbler was migratory and that losses of migration have been at least as prevalent as gains throughout the history of Parulidae. Therefore, extant sedentary tropical radiations in the Parulidae represent losses of latitudinal migration and colonization of the tropics from temperate regions. We also tested for phylogenetic signal in migratory behaviour, and our results indicate that although migratory behaviour is variable within some wood-warbler species and clades, phylogeny significantly predicts the migratory distance of species in the Parulidae.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 20180557 ◽  
Author(s):  
David P. L. Toews ◽  
Henry M. Streby ◽  
Lowell Burket ◽  
Scott A. Taylor

Hybridization between divergent taxa can provide insight into the breakdown of characters used in mate choice, as well as reproductive compatibility across deep evolutionary timescales. Hybridization can also occur more frequently in declining populations, as there is a smaller pool of conspecific mates from which to choose. Here, we report an unusual combination of factors that has resulted in a rare, three-species hybridization event among two genera of warblers, one of which is experiencing significant population declines. We use bioacoustic, morphometric and genetic data, to demonstrate that an early generation female hybrid between a golden-winged warbler ( Vermivora chrysoptera ) and a blue-winged warbler ( V. cyanoptera ) went on to mate and successfully reproduce with a chestnut-sided warbler ( Setophaga pensylvanica ) . We studied the product of this event—a putative chrysoptera × cyanoptera × pensylvanica hybrid—and show that this male offspring sang songs like S. pensylvanica , but had morphometric traits similar to Vermivora warblers. The hybrid's maternal parent had V. chrysoptera mitochondrial DNA and , with six plumage-associated loci, we predicted the maternal parent's phenotype to show that it was likely an early generation Vermivora hybrid . That this hybridization event occurred within a population of Vermivora warblers in significant decline suggests that females may be making the best of a bad situation, and that wood-warblers in general have remained genetically compatible long after they evolved major phenotypic differences.


The Auk ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 346-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dale A. Zimmerman
Keyword(s):  

2021 ◽  
Vol 288 (1942) ◽  
pp. 20202804
Author(s):  
Richard K. Simpson ◽  
David R. Wilson ◽  
Allison F. Mistakidis ◽  
Daniel J. Mennill ◽  
Stéphanie M. Doucet

Closely related species often exhibit similarities in appearance and behaviour, yet when related species exist in sympatry, signals may diverge to enhance species recognition. Prior comparative studies provided mixed support for this hypothesis, but the relationship between sympatry and signal divergence is likely nonlinear. Constraints on signal diversity may limit signal divergence, especially when large numbers of species are sympatric. We tested the effect of sympatric overlap on plumage colour and song divergence in wood-warblers (Parulidae), a speciose group with diverse visual and vocal signals. We also tested how number of sympatric species influences signal divergence. Allopatric species pairs had overall greater plumage and song divergence compared to sympatric species pairs. However, among sympatric species pairs, plumage divergence positively related to the degree of sympatric overlap in males and females, while male song bandwidth and syllable rate divergence negatively related to sympatric overlap. In addition, as the number of species in sympatry increased, average signal divergence among sympatric species decreased, which is likely due to constraints on warbler perceptual space and signal diversity. Our findings reveal that sympatry influences signal evolution in warblers, though not always as predicted, and that number of sympatric species can limit sympatry's influence on signal evolution.


The Auk ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 431-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey F. Kelly

AbstractTracking seasonal movements of songbirds is a key step in understanding the annual cycle of migrants. To better understand autumn migration of wood warblers, I analyzed stable-hydrogen isotope ratios of feathers collected from three species captured during stopover at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico. To assess the form and strength of the relationship between timing of migration and breeding origins, I regressed stable-hydrogen isotope ratios of feathers against date of capture. These analyses indicated that Orange-crowned Warblers (Vermivora celata) and Common Yellowthroats (Geothlypis trichas) breeding in the southern portion of these species' ranges precede their northern conspecifics in autumn migration. By contrast, Yellow Warblers (Dendroica petechia) from northern breeding sites arrived before more southerly breeding conspecifics. This pattern is similar to that reported previously in Wilson's Warbler (Wilsonia pusilla). These findings suggest that, among wood warblers, (1) timing of autumn migration is often strongly related to breeding location and (2) interspecific variation in the direction of this relationship is large. The direction and strength of these patterns have implications for our understanding of inter- and intraspecific geographic variation in the life histories of migrants.Evidencia de Isótopos Estables Conecta la Geografía de Nidificación con el Momento de la Migración en Especies de Parulidae


The Auk ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 122 (3) ◽  
pp. 793-802 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel D. McNett ◽  
Karen Marchetti

Abstract Accurate assessment of color is essential in testing the adaptive significance of color variation in avian plumage. Over the past decade, use of objective methods for assessing color has increased, with particular emphasis on ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths. Researchers have used various source materials, most notably museum specimens, to extend or represent color measurements of individuals in natural populations. Here, we address whether the colors seen in museum specimens accurately represent the colors seen in natural populations. We focus on UV wavelengths and carotenoid-derived colors across 10 species of wood-warblers (Parulidae). Our results indicate an uneven decrease in brightness across the color spectrum, with greater relative decrease in shorter wavelengths in museum specimens. That decrease leads to differences in both hue and chroma between living and museum specimens. The difference from live specimens appears to increase with the museum specimen's age. Our results suggest that caution is needed when using data from museum specimens to test hypotheses on plumage coloration, particularly those involving communication. Degradación Ultravioleta en Parches de Carotenoides: Especímenes Vivos versus Especímenes de Museo de Especies de la Familia Parulidae


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