Lucy's Warbler - BirdForum Opus

Photo by Lisa W
Location: Hereford, Arizona, USA

Leiothlypis luciae

Vermivora luciae
Oreothlypis luciae

Identification

4.25 inches. The smallest wood warbler. Pale gray upperparts, rust-brown crown and rump, and white underparts. Eye ring is white. Wings are plain gray. Female is smaller and lacks brown cap.

Distribution

Southwestern United States from southeastern California, southern Nevada and Utah; most of Arizona; and southwestern New Mexico and Texas; and northwestern Mexico. Vagrant to coastal California, Oregon, Colorado, Texas, and Louisiana. Winters in western Mexico.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species¹.

It was formerly included in Vermivora or in Oreothlypis.

Habitat

Shrubby and canyon areas in deserts and foothills

Behaviour

Nests in woodpecker holes, abandoned Verdin nests, and sometimes in other types of holes. Occasional cowbird host. Diet includes caterpillars, beetles, and leafhoppers.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. R. T. Chesser, K. J. Burns, C. Cicero, et al. (2019) Sixtieth Supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s Check-list of North American Birds, The Auk: Ornithological Advances XX:1–23. PDF
3. 51st supplement to the AOU checklist of North American birds

External Links

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