Family New World Warblers (Parulidae)

Least Concern

Tennessee Warbler (Leiothlypis peregrina)

Taxonomy

French: Paruline obscure German: Brauenwaldsänger Spanish: Reinita de Tennessee

Taxonomy:

Sylvia peregrina

A. Wilson

, 1811,

banks of Cumberland River, Tennessee, USA

Has hybridized with L. ruficapilla. Monotypic.

Distribution:

Canada (Yukon and British Columbia E to Newfoundland and Nova Scotia) and NE USA (S to N New England); also, rare, in SE Alaska and NW Montana; migrates to area mainly from S Mexico S to NW South America, a few in W Caribbean.

Descriptive notes

10–13 cm; 6·2–18·4 g. A rather short-tailed warbler. Male breeding is olive-green above, darker on wings and tail, with contrasting grey head with... read more

Voice

Song usually consists of three distinct parts: a series of rapid double notes, followed by a series... read more

Habitat

Breeds in variety of coniferous, mixed and deciduous forest, also alder (Alnus) and willow... read more

Food and feeding

Feeds on insects, especially lepidopteran larvae, in summer, and in winter fruits, berries and nectar, as well as insects; flowering trees... read more

Breeding

Season Jun–Aug, egg-laying Jun–Jul; rarely double-brooded, but replacement clutch may be laid up to early Aug. Nest a cup of... read more

Movements

Long-distance migrant. Leaves breeding grounds mainly during second half Aug, moving S or SE to... read more

Status and conservation

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Fairly common to abundant throughout breeding range; numbers fluctuate from year to year in response to cyclical fluctuations of... read more

Bibliography

Public comments

Scientific classification

Class: Aves

Order: Passeriformes

Family: Parulidae

— Show family text —

Previously considered to include species now separated in Peucedramidae, Zeledoniidae and Teretistridae, as well as two genera now in Phaenicophilidae. The most comprehensive molecular phylogeny of present family to date#R recovered nine principal clades; almost all genera correspond to well-supported units, while two confined to West Indies are maintained based on other characters. Several traditionally recognized genera prove to be paraphyletic or otherwise unsustainable: Dendroica is abandoned because Setophaga is nested within it and has priority; Ergaticus is embedded within the clade occupied by Cardellina; Euthlypis is subsumed within Basileuterus; Oporornis is restricted to one species while its former congeners are removed to Geothlypis; Parula proves to be widely paraphyletic (two species move to Setophaga, the rest to a resurrected Oreothlypis); Phaeothlypis is indistinguishable from Myiothlypis; and the three Wilsonia are more correctly placed in Cardellina (two species) and Setophaga (one).

Genus: Leiothlypis Sangster, 2008

— Show genus text —

Previously placed in Vermivora, but recently shown#R to be more closely related to species now in Oreothlypis (see above); may be sister to Oreothlypis, and perhaps better treated as congeneric.

See full taxonomic structure and notes