wood warbler

wood warbler
1. warbler (def. 2).
2. a yellowish-green European warbler, Phylloscopus sibilatrix.
[1810-20]

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Any of about 120 species of lively North and Central American songbirds in the family Parulidae.

Wood warblers superficially resemble the true warblers of the Old World but are usually more brightly coloured (at least in the breeding season) and smaller (about 5 in. [13 cm] long). They commonly inhabit woodlands and sometimes marshes and dry scrub. Their songs are buzzy and monotonous. The usual nest is a tidy cup in a bush or tree. They lay two to five speckled eggs. See also blackpoll warbler; chat; redstart.

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bird
 any of about 120 species in the songbird subfamily Parulinae (Parulidae), within the huge family Emberizidae. Wood warblers are New World birds (bird), distinct from the true warblers (warbler) of the Old World (family Sylviidae). Because most wood warblers are brightly coloured and active, they are known as the “butterflies of the bird world.” The more than 50 North American species of wood warbler are highly migratory, flying from northern forest nesting grounds to tropical wintering grounds. This long-distance migration both poses a plight and offers a spectacle. Because of deforestation in South America, populations of many of these birds are declining. But during the northward migration in spring, it is possible in some areas in the eastern United States to see 30 different species of warbler in a day. Despite their name, they do not warble but sing in thin, dry, sometimes buzzing voices.

      Their usual nest is a tidy cup in a bush or a tree; some (e.g., the ovenbird) make a domed nest on or near the ground. Wood warblers lay two to five (rarely six) speckled eggs (egg).

      The best known is the yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia), sometimes miscalled the wild canary, which breeds from Alaska and Newfoundland to the West Indies, Peru, and the Galapagos Islands; it is 13 cm (5 inches) long, and the males have faintly red-streaked underparts. Dendroica is the largest genus of wood warblers; this chiefly North American genus has 27 species, most of which have contrasting plumage, such as the black, white, and yellow of the myrtle warbler (D. coronata). A common but less-striking species is the blackpoll warbler (D. striata). Some authors merge Dendroica in Vermivora, a less-colourful genus of 11 species, most of them well known in the United States.

      The family's namesake, the northern, or American, parula warbler (Parula americana), which breeds in eastern North America, is pale blue, with white wing bars, a partial white eye ring, and a yellow breast crossed by a narrow dark band. The black-and-white warbler (Mniotilta varia), common east of the Rockies, is streaked and has creeperlike habits. A large tropical genus is Basileuterus; the 22 species are typified by the golden-crowned warbler (B. culicivorus), which is found from Mexico to Argentina.

      The yellowthroats, any of the eight species of the genus Geothlypis, live in marshes and wet thickets. The male of the common yellowthroat (G. trichas)—often called the Maryland yellowthroat in the United States—is yellow with a black mask; his song, a strong repeated “wicheree,” is heard from Alaska and Newfoundland to Mexico. Other yellowthroat species are resident in the tropics. (For other wood warblers, see chat and redstart.)

Sy Montgomery
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Wood warbler — Wood Wood, n. [OE. wode, wude, AS. wudu, wiodu; akin to OHG. witu, Icel. vi?r, Dan. & Sw. ved wood, and probably to Ir. & Gael. fiodh, W. gwydd trees, shrubs.] [1913 Webster] 1. A large and thick collection of trees; a forest or grove; frequently …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Wood warbler — Warbler War bler, n. 1. One who, or that which, warbles; a singer; a songster; applied chiefly to birds. [1913 Webster] In lulling strains the feathered warblers woo. Tickell. [1913 Webster] 2. (Zo[ o]l.) Any one of numerous species of small Old… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • wood warbler — ☆ wood warbler n. WARBLER (sense 2) …   English World dictionary

  • Wood Warbler — This article refers to the Eurasian leaf warbler. For American wood warblers, see New World warbler. Taxobox name = Wood Warbler status = LC | status system = IUCN3.1 image width = 250px regnum = Animalia phylum = Chordata classis = Aves ordo =… …   Wikipedia

  • Wood Warbler — žalioji pečialinda statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas atitikmenys: lot. Phylloscopus sibilatrix angl. Wood Warbler vok. Waldlaubsänger …   Paukščių anatomijos terminai

  • wood warbler — žalioji pečialinda statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas atitikmenys: lot. Phylloscopus sibilatrix angl. wood warbler vok. Waldlaubsänger, m rus. пеночка трещотка, f pranc. pouillot siffleur, m ryšiai: platesnis terminas – pečialindos …   Paukščių pavadinimų žodynas

  • wood warbler — wood′ war bler n. orn warbler 1) • Etymology: 1810–20 …   From formal English to slang

  • wood warbler — noun 1. small bright colored American songbird with a weak unmusical song • Syn: ↑New World warbler • Hypernyms: ↑warbler • Hyponyms: ↑parula warbler, ↑northern parula, ↑Parula americana …   Useful english dictionary

  • wood warbler — noun Date: 1817 warbler 2b …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • wood warbler — noun 1》 a yellow breasted warbler found in woodland, with a trilling song. [Phylloscopus sibilatrix.] 2》 any of the North American warblers. [Family Parulidae.] …   English new terms dictionary

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