Geographic Range
Mourning warblers occur in Neartic and Neotropical regions. Their breeding range is
in the Neartic region and their winter range is in the Neotropical region.
The breeding range extends through Alberta and to northern North Dakota. In Canada,
they are found in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland,
and Nova Scotia. In the United States, they are found in portions of North Dakota,
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia, and Massachusetts.
In the southern part of their range they only breed in higher elevations.
The winter range extends from southern Nicaragua to Colombia, western Venezuela, and
northern Ecuador. Their migration route is through Central America. They migrate relatively
late in spring, leaving their winter range around March and April, but return from
their breeding range early in August.
- Biogeographic Regions
- nearctic
- neotropical
Habitat
Mourning warblers are found in a variety of different habitats. While they are in
their breeding range they are found in brushy woodland clearings, forest edges, brushy
edges of marshes and bogs, and dense second growth.
Males are found in a variety of vegetation types including pure stands of red, white,
or jack pine, to stands of maple-basswood, spruce-fir, aspen, and aspen-birch. These
vegetation types were almost always associated with edge type conditions like roads,
logging trails, clearings, or open woods.
Female nesting sites are usually found in briers or weedy growths in thickets. The
nest will usually be 15 to 50 cm off the ground.
While mourning warblers are in their wintering range they are found in lowland areas
from sea level to about 152 m. They are sometimes found as high as 1219 m but it is
most common to find them at 914 m. They are generally found in edge areas with dense
brush or tall grass.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- forest
- Wetlands
- marsh
- Other Habitat Features
- suburban
- agricultural
Physical Description
Mourning warblers are identifiable by their gray head, neck, and chest, yellow underparts, and olive-green wings and back. These warblers are sexual dimorphic, and change their coloration during the year usually between summer and fall. Also, the juveniles have a different appearance from the adults. Every mourning warbler beaks, irises, feet, and legs are uniform in coloration. The upper part of the beak is brownish-black in color. The bottom part of the beak is pale brown. The iris is brown. The legs and feet are flesh color.
Adult males in spring/summer: Their head and neck are a gray color which then will become a darker grayish-black on their pileum, hindneck, chin, and throat, and they have a black chest. Their underparts are bright yellow. The bright yellow changes into olive-green on its sides and flanks. Their upper parts are then all olive-green edged with white.
Adult males in fall/winter: Their plumage is the same as their summer plumage except the feathers on the throat and chest have gray tips, and the black on their chest is a broken patch. Also, they will have a white-broken eye ring.
Adult females in spring/summer: Females look like the adult male in spring/summer but they will have no black on the chin, throat, or chest. Their chin and throat will be a light gray sometimes a brownish-white color. The color on their pileum and hindneck are duller and are tinged with either more or less olive coloration. Also, their yellow on their under parts are duller.
Young females in first fall/winter: They look like the adult female but they do not have any gray on their head, neck, or chest. Their pileum and hindneck are olive-brownish color. The side of the head and neck are similar but duller. Their eyelids are a dull yellow color. Their chin, throat, and chest are yellowish but duller than the underparts of the body, and is tinged with olive or gray.
Nestlings: Their upper parts are a dark olive-brown color. Their sides and breast are a more yellow brown color. Their belly is a buff yellowish color. Their median and greater wing-coverts are tipped with cinnamon-brown.
An average adult male length is 12.1 cm. The average wingspan 6.15 cm in length. The
average tail length is 4.9 cm. An average adult female length is 12.0 cm. The average
wingspan is 5.89 cm. The average tail length is 4.67 cm. The average bill length for
both male and female is 1.1 cm. The average weight for both male and female is 13
grams.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes colored or patterned differently
- male more colorful
Reproduction
There is little known about the mourning warbler mating system. However, members of
the wood warbler family (
Phylloscopidae
) can be monogamous or poly-territorial polygynous.
- Mating System
- monogamous
- polygynous
Mourning warbler breeding range is in the neartic region as far north as Alberta and
as far south as North Dakota. They migrate back to their breeding range anywhere from
March to April. Therefore, the breeding season takes place in summer, usually from
late-April to early-July. The females will find a suitable nest site to lay her eggs
and then will incubate them once they are laid. Sometimes she will start incubating
them before they are all laid. Suitable nesting sites are usually found on the ground
or close to the ground in dense herbaceous or shrubby vegetation. These nests are
usually found near edge areas. The nests are made up of leaves, weed stalks, pieces
of bark, grasses, sedges, and are lined with fine rootlets, grasses, or hair and they
are usually bulky. Eggs may be laid as early as the end of May or as late as the middle
of July. Clutch size can vary from 2 to 5 eggs, with an average of 4 eggs. The incubation
period for mourning warblers are usually 12 days. The nestling period for mourning
warblers are 8-9 days.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- oviparous
Both male and female mourning warblers help with parental care. The brooding is done
by the females. While the female is incubating the eggs the male will feed her either
on the nest or away from the nest. Once the eggs hatch the female will usually continue
to brood to protect the hatchlings and the males will bring the food to the nest for
the female and the hatchlings. When the male brings the food back to the nest he will
do one of three things. (1) He will feed the hatchlings himself. (2) He will give
the food to the female and she will feed the hatchlings. (3) He will give half to
the female and they will both feed the hatchlings. Sometimes when the eggs first hatch
the female will leave the nest and get food for the hatchlings. After the nestlings
fledged the family group stays together for three weeks, until the fledglings become
more independent and can forage for themselves.
- Parental Investment
- altricial
- male parental care
- female parental care
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- male
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- male
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
- extended period of juvenile learning
Lifespan/Longevity
There is little known on mourning warbler lifespan and longevity. One male individual
bird that was banded in Port Huron, Michigan had an estimated age of 7. The main mortality
is due to predation on nestlings and fledglings.
Behavior
Mourning warblers are diurnal and are a migratory species. Both male and female can
be territorial, but males show aggressive behaviors towards interspecific and intraspecific
species. These displays include wing and tail flipping with tshirp notes, and sometimes
they will chase the other individual. Adult mourning warblers will do two distraction
displays to protect their offspring. One of the displays is when the adult will mimic
a mouse running through the vegetation, the other display is when the adult will pretend
to have a broken wing. Both of these displays are meant to make the predator or threat
follow or go after them instead of their offspring. The male mourning warblers will
sing and both male and females will do call notes.
- Key Behaviors
- terricolous
- flies
- diurnal
- motile
- migratory
- territorial
Home Range
Male mourning warblers hold territories during breeding season. The size of these
territories range from 1.6 to 2.4 acres, with an average of 1.9 acres. The males defend
their territories by singing their territorial song and will do more aggressive displays.
Some of these displays include: the males hopping from perch to perch rapidly and
bobbing their bodies violently, rapidly flipping their wings outward,and open & close
their tails, tschrip notes, and short winded chases.
Communication and Perception
Male mourning warblers have two calls; the territorial song and the flight song. Adults
will give off two call notes, either in a harsh quality or less harsh quality that
is in higher pitch. Although females give call notes, only males sing. The territorial
song is loud and ringing with a throaty quality. The paraphrase of this song is whee-o
whee-o whee-o, whoo-e whoo-e. The flight song is rapid and begins with a series of
chipping notes, followed by a rapid version of the territorial song and ends with
a few more chipping notes. The paraphrase of this song is chi-chi-chi-chip-chip-cheery-cheery-chorry-chorry-chi-chip.
The first of the two call notes that the adults do is a loud and harsh tshrip. You
can hear this if the bird is disturbed away from its nest, this also can be heard
from migrating mourning warblers. The second call note is a less harsh and a higher
in pitch tsip. It can be heard when the nest or fledglings are approached. It can
also be heard when two females have a territorial encounter.
- Communication Channels
- acoustic
Food Habits
Mourning warblers are insectivores. They eat spiders, beetles, and insects that are
found on the ground or low vegetation. Nestlings are fed primarily
Lepidoptera
larvae but other small insects were fed also.
- Primary Diet
-
carnivore
- insectivore
- eats non-insect arthropods
- Animal Foods
- insects
- terrestrial non-insect arthropods
Predation
There are many predators of eggs and nestlings of mourning warblers. Some of the predators
that are known for taking eggs and nestlings from nests are thirteen-lined ground
squirrels, Franklin’s ground squirrels, eastern chipmunks, least chipmunks, and red
squirrels. Brown-headed cowbirds are nest parasites. There are two types of anti-predator
displays that adult warblers use to protect their offspring. The first display is
when a threat or predator is approaching the nest; the adult will dive over the edge
quickly and run away through the vegetation, then 20 to 25 feet from the nest it would
take flight. This display will make it seem like the adult is a mouse and will confuse
the predator. The second display is the “broken wing” display given off by the adult
when the young has left the nest. The adult will dash and flop through the vegetation
flipping the wings outward of the body and holding them out in a dragging position
for short periods of time.
Ecosystem Roles
Mourning warblers are insectivorous birds that impact insect populations in the ecosystems
they inhabit.
- brown-headed cowbirds ( Molothrus ater )
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Mourning warblers are important members of the ecosystems they inhabit.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no known ways that mourning warblers have a negative affect on humans.
Conservation Status
The conservation status of mourning warblers is classified as least concern on the
IUCN red list. Their populations are declining but the cause is uncertain and the
decline has not been rapid. Mourning warblers are protected under the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act.
Other Comments
Oporornis philadelphia
has also been known by other generic names, including
Sylvia philadelphia
,
Trichas philadelphia
,
Geothylpis philadelphia
, and now
Oporornis philadelphia
.
Additional Links
Contributors
Mackenzie Purvis (author), University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, Christopher Yahnke (editor), University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Tanya Dewey (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Nearctic
-
living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- marsh
-
marshes are wetland areas often dominated by grasses and reeds.
- suburban
-
living in residential areas on the outskirts of large cities or towns.
- agricultural
-
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
- monogamous
-
Having one mate at a time.
- polygynous
-
having more than one female as a mate at one time
- altricial
-
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
- male parental care
-
parental care is carried out by males
- female parental care
-
parental care is carried out by females
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- migratory
-
makes seasonal movements between breeding and wintering grounds
- territorial
-
defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
References
BirdLife International, 2016. " Geothylpis philadelphia " (On-line). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Accessed April 23, 2017 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/22721824/0 .
Chapman, F. 1917. The warblers of North America . New York: New York :D. Appleton. Accessed April 22, 2017 at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/116233 .
Cox, G. 1960. A life history of the Mourning Warbler.. Wilson Bull , 72: 5-28. Accessed April 22, 2017 at https://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/wilson/v072n01/p0005-p0028.pdf .
Klimkiewicz, K., R. Clapp, A. Futcher. 1983. Longevity records of North American birds: Remizidae through Paurlinae.. Journal of Field Ornithology , 54/3: 287-294. Accessed April 23, 2017 at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/nwrc/publications/83pubs/klimkiewicz834.pdf .
Knight, O. 1908. The Birds of Maine with key to and description of the various species known to occur or to have occured in the state, an account of their distribution and migration, showing their relative abundance in the various counties of the state as well as other regions, and contributions to their life histories . Maine: Charles H. Glass & Co., Bangor, Mc.. Accessed April 22, 2017 at https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=ZXEaAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PR4 .
Ridgway, R., H. Friedmann. 1901. The birds of North and Middle America : a descriptive catalogue of the higher groups, genera, species, and subspecies of birds known to occur in North America, from the Arctic lands to the Isthmus of Panama, the West Indies and other islands of the Caribbean sea, and the Galapagos Archipelago . Washington: Washington :Govt. Print. Off. Accessed April 22, 2017 at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/118018 .
Temrin, H., S. Jakobsson. 1988. Female reproductive success and nest predation in polyterritorial wood warblers ( Phylloscopus sibilatrix ). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology , 23/4: 225-231.
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 2016. "Migratory Bird Treaty Act Protected Species (10.13 List)" (On-line). Accessed April 23, 2017 at https://www.fws.gov/birds/management/managed-species/migratory-bird-treaty-act-protected-species.php .