Detail from painting by John Sill.
All copyrights of Song Bird artwork retained by the artist. No reproduction of any part without permission of the artist.
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Wilson's
warbler (Wilsonia pusilla) is found from as far north as the Arctic
to as far south as Mexico. This is a tiny bird with small slender bill; yellow-green back and
wings, yellow front and cheeks; black cap and eye. It frequents areas near water and is often
found in willows and thickets.
Habitat and food
In whatever region
Wilson's warbler is found, it inhabits streams
and ponds and the low shrubs alongside them. It consumes flies, which it catches
while remaining fairly close to the ground.
Migration and winter range
As they are neotropical migrants,
Wilson's warblers spend winters in forests
from Mexico to Panama and breed in streamside thickets and other wet, brushy areas
from California to the tree line in Alaska. They are also found at reduced densities
east across Canada to the Atlantic Ocean. Wilson's warblers are vulnerable to even
partial deforestation of their wintering habitats. When half of a tropical rainforest
was cleared, the resident warblers had to nearly triple the size of their feeding
territories to compensate. Habitat factors also appear to influence mating behavior.
In California, coastal populations of Wilson's Warblers are usually monogamous, laying
a brood of four to six eggs. But at higher elevations in California, where nest predation
is lower and food availability is greater but more variable, male warblers will mate
with several females who each lay a brood of two to seven eggs.
Food
These warblers
primarily feed on insects, but may eat berries when they are available.
Nest
Ground-low nesting, open-cup
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