Oriente Warbler
Teretistris fornsi
A noisy flocking species that uses a wide variety of wooded and scrubby habitats. Its combination of blue-gray upperparts, yellow from throat to upper belly, and gray lower belly eliminate all other species in range. The similar Yellow-headed Warbler has a yellow crown and a gray chest. The Prothonotary Warbler has a greenish or yellow crown and a green back. Calls include a relatively high and buzzy “zip” or “zhip” and a rather sharp, but slighty buzzy “tip”; both typically given in a somewhat rapid series. Song is a jumbled combination of these and similar notes.
Identification
The Oriente warbler is about 13 cm (5.1 in) long and weighs 7.4 to 13 g (0.26 to 0.46 oz). The nominate subspecies has a gray crown, nape, and upperparts. Its face, throat, and most of its underparts are yellow; its belly and undertail coverts are white and its flanks have a dull brownish wash. Subspecies T. f. turquinensis is slightly larger than the nominate; its crown and upperparts are sooty gray and the wash on its flanks is gray rather than brownish.
Taxonomy
The Oriente warbler shares its family and genus with the yellow-headed warbler (T. fernandinae). They were originally placed in the New World warblers (Parulidae) but phylogenetic studies of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA led to reassessment of several genera and in 2017 the Cuban warblers were moved to their own family. Their closest relatives are the four members of family Spindalidae, the yellow-breasted chat (Icteria virens), and the New World blackbirds of family Icteridae.<p>The Oriente warbler has two subspecies, the nominate T. f. fornsi and T. f. turquinensis.
- Scientific name
- Teretistris fornsi
- Authority
- Gundlach, 1858
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Teretistridae
- Genus
- Teretistris
Range and habitat
The nominate subspecies of Oriente warbler is found in the mountains and coast of eastern Cuba and the Sabana-Camagüey Archipelago off the main island's north coast. T. f. turquinensis is found in the Sierra Maestra along the southeastern Cuban coast. It inhabits all available forest types as long as they have a relatively undisturbed understory, and also scrubby thickets in drier areas. In elevation it ranges from sea level to almost 2,000 m (6,600 ft). It tends to occur in scrubby semi-arid woodlands near the coast and in more humid forest at higher elevations.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The Oriente warbler is a year-round resident throughout its range.<p>The Oriente warbler forages from the ground to the forest mid-level, mainly by gleaning but also by hover-gleaning and probing bark and clumps of dead leaves. Its major prey is beetles (Coleoptera) but it feeds on other insects, other invertebrates, small lizards, and possibly small fruits. In the non-breeding season it often forages in flocks of up to about 15 of its species, which can be the nucleus of mixed-species foraging flocks.<p>The Oriente warbler's breeding season is from March to July, with eggs laid in March and April. It makes a nest of moss, grass, rootlets, and other plant fibers. It usually places it in a clump of Tillandsia (an epiphyte) about 1 m (3 ft) up on a branch or fork. The clutch is two or three eggs. The incubation period is eight or nine days and fledging occurs 10 to 11 days after hatch.<p>The Oriente warbler's song is " a series of buzzy notes interspersed with sweeter notes". Its calls include a "sharp 'tchip'."
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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