The Black-throated Green Warbler, Setophaga virens, is a small songbird

Songbird

A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...

 of the New World warbler

New World warbler

The New World warblers or wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds restricted to the New World. They are not related to the Old World warblers or the Australian warblers....

 family.

It is 12 cm long and weighs 9 g, and has an olive-green crown, a yellow face with olive markings, a thin pointed bill, white wing bars, an olive-green back and pale underparts with black streaks on the flanks. Adult males have a black throat and upper breast; females have a pale throat and black markings on their breast.
The breeding habitat of the Black-throated Green Warbler is coniferous and mixed forests in eastern North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

 and western Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 and cypress swamp

Swamp

A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...

s on the southern Atlantic coast. These birds' nests are open cups, which are usually situated close to the trunk of a tree.

These birds migrate

Bird migration

Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...

 to Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, Central America

Central America

Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...

, the West Indies and southern Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

; An example migration destination is to the Petenes mangroves of the Yucatán. Some birds straggle as far as South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

, with the southernmost couple of records coming from Ecuador

Ecuador

Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...

.

Behavior

Black-throated Green Warblers forage actively in vegetation, and they sometimes hover-(gleaning

Gleaning (birds)

Gleaning is a term for a feeding strategy by birds in which they catch invertebrate prey, mainly arthropods, by plucking them from foliage or the ground, from crevices such as rock faces and under the eaves of houses, or even, as in the case of ticks and lice, from living animals. This behavior is...

), or catch insects in flight-(hawking

Hawking (birds)

Hawking is a feeding strategy in birds involving catching flying insects in the air. The term usually refers to a technique of sallying out from a perch to snatch an insect and then returning to the same or a different perch...

). Insects are the main constituents of these birds' diets, although berries will occasionally be consumed.

The song of this bird is a buzzed zee-zee-zee-zooo-zeet or zoo-zee-zoo-zoo-zeet. The call is a sharp tsip.

This bird is vulnerable to nest parasitism by the Brown-headed Cowbird

Brown-headed Cowbird

The Brown-headed Cowbird is a small brood parasitic icterid of temperate to subtropical North America. They are permanent residents in the southern parts of their range; northern birds migrate to the southern United States and Mexico in winter, returning to their summer habitat around March or...

.

Books

• Morse, D. H. and A. F. Poole (2005). Black-throated Green Warbler (Dendroica virens). The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Ithaca: Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology; Retrieved from The Birds of North American Online database.

Reports

• Cooper JM, Enns KA & Shepard MG. (1997). Status of the black-throated green warbler in British Columbia. Canadian Research Index. p. n/a.

• Norton MR. (1999). Status of the black-throated green warbler, Dendroica virens, in Alberta. Canadian Research Index. p. n/a.

Thesis

• Chmielewski A. M.S. (1992). The effects of right-of-way construction through forest interior habitat on bird and small mammal populations and rates of nest predation. State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, United States, New York.

• Clarke M. M.Sc. (2005). Avian abundance and habitat relationships in a managed forest landscape in eastern Nova Scotia. Dalhousie University (Canada), Canada.

• Collins SL. Ph.D. (1981). HABITAT RELATIONSHIPS AND HABITAT VARIABILITY OF THE WOOD WARBLERS (PARULIDAE). The University of Oklahoma, United States, Oklahoma.

• Drolet B. M.Sc. (1997). Variation des assemblages d'oiseaux chanteurs selon la structure du paysage de la sapiniere boreale exploitee. Universite Laval (Canada), Canada.

• Elliott CA. Ph.D. (1987). Songbird species diversity and habitat use in relation to vegetation structure and size of forest stands and forest-clearcut edges in north-central Maine. The University of Maine, United States, Maine.

• Hamady MA. Ph.D. (2000). An ecosystem approach to assessing the effects of forest heterogeneity and disturbance on birds of the northern hardwood forest in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Michigan State University, United States, Michigan.

• Hannah TA. M.Sc. (2006). Declines in the black-throated green warbler (Dendroica virens): From pattern to process. University of Alberta (Canada), Canada.

• McKinley PS. Ph.D. (2004). Tree species selection and use by foraging insectivorous passerines in a forest landscape. University of New Brunswick (Canada), Canada.

• Rail J-F. M.Sc. (1995). Definir la fragmentation de l'habitat des passereaux par l'effet de barriere des discontinuites de l'habitat d'origine humaine. Universite Laval (Canada), Canada.

• Roloff GJ. Ph.D. (1994). Using an ecological classification system and wildlife habitat models in forest planning. Michigan State University, United States, Michigan.

• Whelan CJ. Ph.D. (1987). Effects of foliage structure on the foraging behavior of insectivorous forest birds. Dartmouth College, United States, New Hampshire.

Articles

• Adams DA & Hammond JS. (1991). Changes in Forest Vegetation Bird and Small Mammal Populations at Mount Mitchell North Carolina USA 1959-62 and 1985. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society. vol 107, no 1. pp. 3–12.

• Bermingham E, Rohwer S, Freeman S & Wood C. (1992). Vicariance Biogeography in the Pleistocene and Speciation in North American Wood Warblers a Test of Mengel's Model. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. vol 89, no 14. pp. 6624–6628.

• Betts MG, Hadley AS & Doran PJ. (2005). Avian mobbing response is restricted by territory boundaries: Experimental evidence from two species of forest warblers. Ethology. vol 111, no 9. pp. 821–835.

• Caroline G, Marcel D, Jean-Pierre LS & Jean H. (2004). Are temperate mixedwood forests perceived by birds as a distinct forest type?. Canadian Journal of Forest Research
  Canadian Journal of Forest Research
  The Canadian Journal of Forest Research is a peer-reviewed journal of the NRC Research Press covering many research topics related to forest resource management. The journal publishes several manuscript types, including articles, reviews, notes and commentaries...
  
  . vol 34, no 9. p. 1895.

• Collins SL. (1983). Geographic Variation in Habitat Structure for the Wood Warblers in Maine and Minnesota USA. Oecologia
  Oecologia
  Oecologia is an international peer-reviewed English-language journal published by Springer. The journal publishes original research in a range of topics related to plant and animal ecology....
  
  . vol 59, no 2-3. pp. 246–252.

• Collins SL. (1983). Geographic Variation in Habitat Structure of the Black-Throated Green Warbler Dendroica-Virens. Auk. vol 100, no 2. pp. 382–389.

• Darveau M, Beauchesne P, Belanger L, Huot J & Larue P. (1995). Riparian forest strips as habitat for breeding birds in boreal forest. Journal of Wildlife Management. vol 59, no 1. pp. 67–78.

• Desgranges JL & Rondeau G. (1995). CHANGES IN THE BIRD COMMUNITIES OF A BALSAM FIR WHITE BIRCH FOREST FOLLOWING AN INSECT PEST EPIDEMIC. For Chron. vol 71, no 2. pp. 201–210.

• Doyon F, Gagnon D & Giroux J-F. (2005). Effects of strip and single-tree selection cutting on birds and their habitat in a Southwestern Quebec northern hardwood forest. Forest Ecology & Management. vol 209, no 1-2. pp. 101–115.

• Greenberg R, Gonzales CE, Bichier P & Reitsma R. (2001). Nonbreeding habitat selection and foraging behavior of the Black-throated Green Warbler complex in Southeastern Mexico. Condor. vol 103, no 1. pp. 31–37.

• Hanowski J, Danz N, Lind J & Niemi G. (2003). Breeding bird response to riparian forest harvest and harvest equipment. Forest Ecology & Management. vol 174, no 1-3. pp. 315–328.

• Hanowski JM, Niemi GJ & Blake JG. (1990). Statistical Perspectives and Experimental Design When Counting Birds on Line Transects. Condor. vol 92, no 2. pp. 326–335.

• Heckscher CM. (2000). Forest-dependent birds of the Great Cypress (North Pocomoke) Swamp: Species composition and implications for conservation. Northeastern Naturalist. vol 7, no 2. pp. 113–130.

• Hobson KA & Bayne E. (2000). Breeding bird communities in boreal forest of western Canada: Consequences of "unmixing" the mixedwoods. Condor. vol 102, no 4. pp. 759–769.

• Hobson KA & Bayne E. (2000). Effects of forest fragmentation by agriculture on avian communities in the southern boreal mixedwoods of western Canada. Wilson Bulletin. vol 112, no 3. pp. 373–387.

• Holmes RT & Robinson SK. (1981). Tree Species Preferences of Foraging Insectivorous Birds in a Northern Hardwoods Forest. Oecologia
  Oecologia
  Oecologia is an international peer-reviewed English-language journal published by Springer. The journal publishes original research in a range of topics related to plant and animal ecology....
  
  . vol 48, no 1. pp. 31–35.

• Holmes RT & Sherry TW. (2001). Thirty-year bird population trends in an unfragmented temperate deciduous forest: Importance of habitat change. Auk. vol 118, no 3. pp. 589–609.

• Jim S & Keith AH. (2000). Bird communities associated with live residual tree patches within cut blocks and burned habitat in mixedwood boreal forests. Canadian Journal of Forest Research
  Canadian Journal of Forest Research
  The Canadian Journal of Forest Research is a peer-reviewed journal of the NRC Research Press covering many research topics related to forest resource management. The journal publishes several manuscript types, including articles, reviews, notes and commentaries...
  
  . vol 30, no 8. p. 1281.

• Kirk DA, Diamond AW, Smith AR, Holland GE & Chytyk P. (1997). Population changes in boreal forest birds in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Wilson Bulletin. vol 109, no 1. pp. 1–27.

• Lacki MJ & Baker MD. (1998). Observations of forest-interior bird communities in older-growth forests in eastern Kentucky. Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science. vol 59, no 2. pp. 174–177.

• Laurent EJ, Shi HJ, Gatziolis D, LeBouton JP, Walters MB & Liu JG. (2005). Using the spatial and spectral precision of satellite imagery to predict wildlife occurrence patterns. Remote Sensing of Environment. vol 97, no 2. pp. 249–262.

• Lopez Ornat A & Greenberg R. (1990). Sexual Segregation by Habitat in Migratory Warblers in Quintana Roo Mexico. Auk. vol 107, no 3. pp. 539–543.

• Martin PR, Fotheringham JR & Robertson RJ. (1995). A Prairie Warbler with a conspecific and heterospecific song repertoire. The Auk. vol 112, no 3. p. 770.

• Maurer BA & Whitmore RC. (1981). Foraging of 5 Bird Species in 2 Forests with Different Vegetation Structure. Wilson Bulletin. vol 93, no 4. pp. 478–490.

• Meiklejohn BA & Hughes JW. (1999). Bird communities in riparian buffer strips of industrial forests. American Midland Naturalist. vol 141, no 1. pp. 172–184.

• Merrill SB, Cuthbert FJ & Oehlert G. (1998). Residual patches and their contribution to forest-bird diversity on northern Minnesota aspen clearcuts. Conservation Biology. vol 12, no 1. pp. 190–199.

• Michael AP & Jutta CB. (1998). Spruce budworm outbreaks and the incidence of vagrancy in eastern North American wood-warblers. Canadian Journal of Zoology. vol 76, no 3. p. 433.

• Mitchell JM. (1999). Habitat relationships of five northern bird species breeding in hemlock ravines in Ohio, USA. Natural Areas Journal. vol 19, no 1. pp. 3–11.

• Morgan K & Freedman B. (1985). Breeding Bird Communities in a Hardwood Forest Succession in Nova Scotia Canada. Canadian Field Naturalist. vol 100, no 4. pp. 506–519.

• Morse DH. (1977). The Occupation of Small Islands by Passerine Birds. Condor. vol 79, no 4. pp. 399–412.

• Morse DH. (1991). Song Types of Black-Throated Green Warblers on Migration. The Wilson Bulletin. vol 103, no 1. p. 93.

• Parrish JD. (1995). Effects of needle architecture on warbler habitat selection in a coastal spruce forest. Ecology. vol 76, no 6. pp. 1813–1820.

• Parrish JD. (1995). Experimental evidence for intrinsic microhabitat preferences in the black-throated green warbler. Condor. vol 97, no 4. pp. 935–943.

• Perry EF & Andersen DE. (2003). Advantages of clustered nesting for Least Flycatchers in north-central Minnesota. Condor. vol 105, no 4. pp. 756–770.

• Rabenold KN. (1978). Foraging Strategies Diversity and Seasonality in Bird Communities of Appalachian Spruce Fir Forests. Ecological Monographs. vol 48, no 4. pp. 397–424.

• Rail J-F, Darveau M, Desrochers A & Huot J. (1997). Territorial responses of boreal forest birds to habitat gaps. Condor. vol 99, no 4. pp. 976–980.

• Rappole JH, King DI & Barrow WC, Jr. (1999). Winter ecology of the endangered Golden-cheeked Warbler. Condor. vol 101, no 4. pp. 762–770.

• Rising JD. (1988). Phenetic Relationships among the Warblers in the Dendroica-Virens Complex and a Record of Dendroica-Virens from Sonora Mexico. Wilson Bulletin. vol 100, no 2. pp. 312–316.

• Robichaud I & Villard M-A. (1999). Do Black-throated Green Warblers prefer conifers? Meso- and microhabitat use in a mixedwood forest. Condor. vol 101, no 2. pp. 262–271.

• Robinson SK & Holmes RT. (1982). Foraging Behavior of Forest Birds the Relationships among Search Tactics Diet and Habitat Structure. Ecology. vol 63, no 6. pp. 1918–1931.

• Rodewald PG & Brittingham MC. (2002). Habitat use and behavior of mixed species landbird flocks during fall migration. Wilson Bulletin. vol 114, no 1. pp. 87–98.

• Ross RM, Redell LA, Bennett RM & Young JA. (2004). Mesohabitat use of threatened hemlock forests by breeding birds of the Delaware River basin in northeastern United States. Natural Areas Journal. vol 24, no 4. pp. 307–315.

• Schulte LA, Pidgeon AM & Mladenoff DJ. (2005). One hundred fifty years of change in forest bird breeding habitat: Estimates of species distributions. Conservation Biology. vol 19, no 6. pp. 1944–1956.

• Schulte LS & Niemi GJ. (1998). Bird communities of early-successional burned and logged forest. Journal of Wildlife Management. vol 62, no 4. pp. 1418–1429.

• Smith R & Dallman M. (1996). Forest gap use by breeding black-throated green warblers. The Wilson Bulletin. vol 108, no 3. p. 588.

• Smith R, Hamas M, Dallman M & Ewert D. (1998). Spatial variation in foraging of the Black-throated Green warbler along the shoreline of northern Lake Huron. Condor. vol 100, no 3. pp. 474–484.

• Smith RJ, Moore FR & May CA. (2007). Stopover habitat along the shoreline of northern Lake Huron, Michigan: Emergent aquatic insects as a food resource for spring migrating landbirds. Auk. vol 124, no 1. pp. 107–121.

• Stewart PA. (1986). Fall Migration of Twelve Species of Wood Warblers through Coastal Virginia USA. North American Bird Bander. vol 11, no 3. pp. 83–88.

• Tingley MW, Orwig DA, Field R & Motzkin G. (2002). Avian response to removal of a forest dominant: Consequences of hemlock woolly adelgid infestations. Journal of Biogeography. vol 29, no 10-11. pp. 1505–1516.

• Venier LA & Pearce JL. (2005). Boreal bird community response to jack pine forest succession. Forest Ecology & Management. vol 217, no 1. pp. 19–36.

• Whelan CJ. (1989). Avian foliage structure preferences for foraging and the effect of prey biomass. Animal Behaviour. vol 38, no 5. p. 839.

• Whelan CJ. (2001). Foliage structure influences foraging of insectivorous forest birds: An experimental study. Ecology. vol 82, no 1. pp. 219–231.

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External links

• Black-throated Green Warbler - Dendroica virens - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
• Black-throated Green Warbler Species Account - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
• Black-throated Green Warbler Information - South Dakota Birds and Birding
• Black-throated Green Warbler videos on the Internet Bird Collection