black-throated gray warbler

The black-throated gray warbler was first described by John Kirk Townsend from a specimen collected near today's Portland, Oregon.{{ cite journal | last=Townsend | first=John Kirk | author-link=John Kirk Townsend | year=1837 | title=Description of twelve new species of birds, chiefly from the vicinity of the Columbia River | journal=Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia | volume=7 | pages=187–192 [191] | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/24676853 }} It was known to the Chinook inhabitants of the northwest coast, who called it Ah Kah a qual.{{harvnb|Audubon|Macgillivray|1849|pp=57–59}}{{cite web|author=Guzy, Michael J.|author2=Lowther, Peter E.|name-list-style=amp|year=1997|title=Black-throated Gray Warbler (Dendroica nigrescens)|work=The Birds of North America Online|editor-last=Poole|editor-first=A.|access-date=29 April 2010|url=http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/319}} Townsend described the species as Sylvia nigrescens, placing it with the other New World warblers and the unrelated Old World warblers in the genus Sylvia.{{harvnb|American Ornithologists' Union|1983|pp=539–551}} It is now placed in the genus Setophaga along with about thirty other species, after having been classified in Dendroica for some time.{{cite journal|title=Fifty-Second Supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union Check-List of North American Birds|last1=Chesser|first1=R. Terry|doi=10.1525/auk.2011.128.3.600|journal=The Auk|first2=Richard C.|last2=Banks|first3=F. Keith|last3=Barker|first4=Carla|last4=Cicero|first5=Jon L.|last5=Dunn|first6=Andrew W.|last6=Kratter|first7=Irby J.|last7=Lovette|first8=Pamela C.|last8=Rasmussen|first9=J. V. Jr.|last9=Remsen|first10=James D.|last10=Rising|first11=Douglas F.|last11=Stotz|first12=Kevin|last12=Winker|year=2011|pages=600–613|url=http://www.aou.org/auk/content/128/3/0600-0613.pdf|volume=128|issue=3|bibcode=2011Auk...128..600C |s2cid=13691956 |access-date=2014-07-24|archive-date=2015-02-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150225222225/http://www.aou.org/auk/content/128/3/0600-0613.pdf|url-status=dead}} Within its genus, it is part of a group with black throats and yellow face markings that includes the hermit warbler and Townsend's warbler. It is usually considered an early offshoot among this group of species, but genetic studies suggest a close relation to Grace's warbler.{{cite journal|last1=Rabosky|first1= Daniel L.|last2= Lovette|first2= Irby J.|title= Density-dependent diversification in North American wood warblers|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society B| year=2008|volume=275|doi=10.1098/rspb.2008.0630|issue=1649|pages=2363–71|pmid=18611849|pmc=2603228}}

Of these relatives, the range of the black-throated gray warbler overlaps with those of Townsend's warbler and the hermit warbler, but they occur in different habitats. While Townsend's and hermit warblers commonly hybridize with each other, records of either species hybridizing with the black-throated gray warbler are uncommon.{{cite journal|author=Rohwer, Sievert|year=1994|title=Two New Hybrid Dendroica Warblers and New Methodology for Inferring Parental Species|url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/auk/v111n02/p0441-p0449.pdf|journal=The Auk|volume=111|issue=2|doi=10.2307/4088607|pages=441–449|jstor=4088607}}{{cite journal|title=A New Hybrid Warbler (Dendroica nigrescens × D. occidentalis) and Diagnosis of Similar D. townsendi × D. occidentalis Recombinants|last1=Rohwer|first1=Sievert|last2=Wood|first2=Christopher|last3= Bermingham|first3=Eldredge|journal=The Condor|year=2000|volume=102|jstor=1369809|url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/condor/v102n03/p0713-p0718.pdf|issue=3|pages=713–718|doi=10.1650/0010-5422(2000)102[0713:ANHWDN]2.0.CO;2|s2cid=85838540 }}

There are two subspecies, which are highly similar and of dubious validity. The nominate subspecies S. n. nigrescens occurs on the Pacific coastal region from British Columbia to northern California, while S. n. halseii, described by Giraud in 1841, occupies the inland parts of its range. S. n. halseii birds are slightly larger and more gray in their upperparts.{{ITIS |id = 178896 |taxon=Dendroica nigrescens |access-date=29 April 2010}}

File:Black-throated Gray Warbler NGM-v31-p316-C.jpg

The black-throated gray warbler has mostly black, gray, and white plumage, which is soft, lacking gloss. With its striping and the small yellow spot between its eye and bill, it is a distinctive bird. The sexes differ slightly, both having gray upperparts with black streaks, and white underparts with black streaks on the flanks. The adult male is striped with black on the crown, throat, and below the eye, and has white around its chin and above its eye. The adult female has more dingy plumage on its head, with a white throat and dark gray cheeks. The most similar birds to the black-throated gray warbler are the black-and-white and blackpoll warblers, which although marked in black have entirely different plumage patterns.

It is typically {{convert|13|cm|in|abbr=on}} long, weighing {{convert|8.4|g|oz|abbr=on}}. Wing lengths are {{convert|5.6|–|6.9|cm|in|abbr=on}}, tail lengths {{convert|4.7|–|5.5|cm|in|abbr=on}}, bill lengths {{convert|8.4|–|9.6|mm|in|abbr=on}}, and tarsus lengths {{convert|1.66|–|1.88|cm|in|abbr=on}}, with females slightly smaller than males. Wingspan ranges from 7.5–7.8 in (19–19.7 cm).{{Cite web|title=Black-throated Gray Warbler Identification, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology|url=https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-throated_Gray_Warbler/id|access-date=2020-09-30|website=www.allaboutbirds.org|language=en}}

This bird gives a sharp tup or thick call, like that of Townsend's warbler but flat and unmusical, as well as a high see flight call. The male's song is a series of buzzy notes, with the earlier notes doubled and the next to last note high. This song has three variations, including a quiet "soft song" given by the males while following females gathering material for a nest.{{cite journal|author1=Morrison, Michael L. |author2=Hardy, John William |year=1983|journal=The Wilson Bulletin|volume=95|issue=4|pages=643–647|title=Vocalizations of the Black-throated Gray Warbler|url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/wilson/v095n04/p0640-p0643.pdf}}

File:Dendroica nigrescens on rock.jpg

The black-throated gray warbler breeds in western North America, its range extending from southwestern British Columbia along the Pacific coast to northern Baja California, and east to New Mexico and southern Montana. It winters mostly in Mexico, from southern Baja California to Oaxaca state.{{harvnb|Curson|Quinn|Beadle|1994| pp=126–128}} It has spread into parts of Wyoming and Montana only recently, as Juniperus osteosperma has expanded its range due to a warming climate.{{cite journal|author=Hendricks, Paul|year=2004|title=First nesting record of black-throated gray warbler (Dendroica nigrescens) for Montana|url=https://ojs.lib.byu.edu/ojs/index.php/wnan/article/viewPDFInterstitial/1402/1257|format=PDF|journal=Western North American Naturalist|volume=64|issue=4|pages=548–550}} Vagrants have been recorded across eastern North America{{harvnb|Sibley|2000|p=437}} and in Cuba.{{cite journal|last1=Wallace|first1=G. E.|last2=Wallace|first2=E. A. H.|last3=Froehlich|first3=D. R.|last4=Walker|first4=B.|last5=Kirkconnell|first5=A.|last6=Torres|first6=E. S.|last7=Carlisle|first7=H. A.|last8=Machell|first8=E.|year=1999|title=Hermit Thrush and Black-throated Gray Warbler, new for Cuba, and other significant bird records from Cayo Coco and vicinity, Ciego de Avila Province, Cuba, 1995–1997|journal=Florida Field Naturalist|volume=27|issue=2|pages=37–51|url=http://www.fosbirds.org/sites/default/files/FFNs/FFNv27n2p37-51Wallace.pdf|access-date=2014-07-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924015001/http://www.fosbirds.org/sites/default/files/FFNs/FFNv27n2p37-51Wallace.pdf|archive-date=2015-09-24|url-status=dead}}

The black-throated gray warbler breeds in open coniferous and mixed forest with a brushy understory, in dry open oak forests, and in chaparral and other scrubland. It is particularly associated with pinyon pines, junipers, and oaks. It migrates to the south late in the fall, returning north in mid-spring. While migrating, it forages in any woodland or scrub it passes through. In its wintering grounds, it occurs in dry woodland and tall scrub. Though its status is not well known, it does not appear to be seriously threatened by habitat destruction or other human activities, unlike many migratory warblers.{{Cite book|author1=Garret, Kimball L. |author2=Dunning, John B. Jr. |year=2001|contribution=Wood-Warblers |pages=[https://archive.org/details/sibleyguidetobir00sibl_227/page/n491 492]–509 |title=The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior|url=https://archive.org/details/sibleyguidetobir00sibl_227 |url-access=limited |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf|editor=Elphick, Chris|editor2=Dunning, John B. Jr.|editor3=Sibley, David Allen|location=New York|isbn=978-1-4000-4386-6}} It is a fairly common bird, among the most common in some localities.{{cite journal|author1=Remsen, J. V. Jr. |author2=Cardiff, Stephen |year=1979|title=First records of the race scotti of the Rufous-crowned Sparrow in California|journal=Western Birds|volume=10|pages=45–46|issue=1|url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/wb/v10n01/p0045-p0046.pdf}} Because it is common and not in rapid decline, it is assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

The black-throated gray warbler is usually approachable, and can easily be observed while foraging. Despite this, it is poorly known, especially in its breeding behavior, of which Birds of North America said "almost no information is available". It forages, often in flocks with other species. It feeds on insects gleaned on low branches, especially caterpillars.{{cite book|author=Sprunt, Alexander Jr.|contribution=Black-throated Gray Warbler|editor1=Sprunt, Alexander Jr.|editor2=Griscom, Ludlow|title=The Warblers of North America|year=1979|publisher=Doubleday|edition=Revised and updated|isbn=978-0-385-12353-2|url=https://archive.org/details/warblersofameric00gris}}

The nest is usually placed on a horizontal tree branch or in a shrub, a few metres above the ground. The nest is an open cup constructed of grass stalks and other fibres, and lined with feathers and hair. The female lays three to five pinkish eggs with brown dots from May to July.{{harvnb|Finley|1908| p=127}}{{harvnb|Wheelock|1912| pp=401–404}}{{cite journal|last=Barlow|first=C.|title=The Nesting Haunts of the Black-throated Gray Warbler|journal=Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club|volume=1|issue=5|pages=96–97|year=1899|doi=10.2307/1360756|title-link=s:The Condor/1 (5)/The Nesting Haunts of the Black-throated Gray Warbler|jstor=1360756}} Incubation and fledging periods are unknown. This species has been recorded giving a distraction display, pretending to be injured to distract predators from its nest.{{harvnb|Grinnell|Storer|1924|pp=529–531}} Both parents feed the young, though the female may do so more frequently.{{cite book|author=Finley, William L.|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7824882#216|year=1923|volume=3|title=Birds of America|contribution=Black-throated Gray Warbler|editor=Pearson, T. Gilbert}}

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

• {{cite book|author=American Ornithologists' Union|year=1983|url=http://www.aou.org/checklist/north/print.php|title=Check-list of North American Birds|edition=7th|publisher=American Ornithologists' Union|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=978-1-891276-00-2}}
• {{cite book|title=Ornithological biography, or An account of the habits of the birds of the United States of America: accompanied by descriptions of the objects represented in the work entitled The birds of America, and interspersed with delineations of American scenery and manners|last1=Audubon|first1=John James|author-link=John James Audubon|last2=Macgillivray|first2=William|author-link2=William MacGillivray|volume=V|url=http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=darltext;idno=31735056284767;seq=101;cc=darltext;view=image;page=root;size=s;frm=frameset;|year=1849|location=Edinburgh|publisher=Judah Dobson, A. Black}}
• {{cite book|last=Coues|first=Eliot|title=Birds of the Colorado Valley: A Repository of Scientific and Popular Information Concerning North American Ornithology, Part First, Passeres to Laniidae|series=United States Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories, Miscellaneous Publications—No. 11|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/22626526|year=1878|location=Washington|publisher=Government Printing Office}}
• {{cite book|last1=Curson|first1=Jon|last2=Quinn|first2=David|last3=Beadle|first3=David|title=Warblers of the Americas: an Identification Guide|location=Boston|year=1994|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|isbn=978-0-395-70998-6|url=https://archive.org/details/warblersofameric00curs}}
• {{cite book|last=Finley|first=William Lovell|title=American Birds, Studied and Photographed from Life|year=1908|publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons|location=New York|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7277413#197}}
• {{cite book|last1=Grinnell|first1=Joseph|author-link=Joseph Grinnell|last2=Storer|first2=Tracy Irwin|title=Animal life in the Yosemite; an account of the mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians in a cross-section of the Sierra Nevada|year=1924|publisher=University of California Press|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/10786505#572}}
• {{Cite book|last=Sibley|first=David Allen|author-link=David Allen Sibley|title=The Sibley Guide to Birds|year=2000|location=New York|publisher=Alfred A. Knopf|isbn=978-0-679-45122-8|url=https://archive.org/details/sibleyguidetobir00sibl_0}}
• {{cite book|last=Wheelock|first=Irene Grosvenor|year=1912|title=Birds of California: an Introduction to More Than Three Hundred Common Birds of the State and Adjacent Islands, with a Supplementary List of Rare Migrants, Accidental Visitants, and Hypothetical Subspecies|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/7858|location=Chicago|publisher=A. Ac. McClure}}

{{Commons category|Setophaga nigrescens}}

• [http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Black-throated_Gray_Warbler.html Black-throated Gray Warbler] at All About Birds
• [http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/black-throated-grey-warbler-dendroica-nigrescens Black-throated Grey Warbler] at the Internet Bird Collection

{{Taxonbar|from=Q3176524}}

black-throated gray warbler

Category:Native birds of Western Canada

Category:Native birds of the Western United States

Category:Meso-American wintering birds

black-throated gray warbler

black-throated gray warbler