Vermivora luciaeLucy's warbler
Geographic Range
Lucy's Warbler is found in the southwestern United States, mainly in Arizona and New Mexico. They are also found in the lower parts of Nevada and California. They migrate to Mexico in the winter.
(Gough 1997)
Habitat
Consists of scrub thickets that are usually near water. They are midstory to canopy nesters.
(Robbins 1966)
- Terrestrial Biomes
- chaparral
Physical Description
Lucy's Warbler is a small bird about 11 centimeters in length. The beak is very pointed, and thin. The back area is a pale grey color, and the underside is white. The males differ from the females by a small, rust colored patch on the crown.
(Gough 1997)
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- bilateral symmetry
Reproduction
Little is known about the reproduction of Lucy's Warbler. It is thought that two eggs are laid at a time. Incubation time is unknown. Lucy's Warbler breeds near water. It is not known if one or both parents care for the young.
(Gough,G.A,1997)
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- oviparous
-
- Average time to hatching
- 11 days
- AnAge
Lifespan/Longevity
-
- Average lifespan
Status: wild - 70 months
- Bird Banding Laboratory
- Average lifespan
Behavior
Little is known about the behavior of Lucy's Warbler.
- Key Behaviors
- flies
- motile
Communication and Perception
Food Habits
Vermivora luciae feeds on insects. The very pointed bill helps it to probe for its food in small cracks and crevices.
(Gough 1997)
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Lucy's Warbler does not appear to have any positive affects on humans or the environment.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Lucy's Warbler does not appear to negatively affect humans or the environment.
Conservation Status
There are no conservation efforts being made at this time regarding Lucy's warbler. The population, however, is declining due to loss of habitat.
(National Audubon Society, 2000)
-
- IUCN Red List
-
Least Concern
More information
-
- IUCN Red List
-
Least Concern
More information
-
- US Federal List
- No special status
-
- CITES
- No special status
Other Comments
Lucy's Warbler looks similar to Bell's Vireo, but has a heavier bill.
(Robbins, 1996)
Contributors
Jenny Genuise (author), Milford High School, George Campbell (editor), Milford High School.
Glossary
- 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.
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- 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.
- chaparral
-
Found in coastal areas between 30 and 40 degrees latitude, in areas with a Mediterranean climate. Vegetation is dominated by stands of dense, spiny shrubs with tough (hard or waxy) evergreen leaves. May be maintained by periodic fire. In South America it includes the scrub ecotone between forest and paramo.
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- 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.
- 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).
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
References
Gough, G. 1997. "Life History Groupings" (On-line). Accessed October 12, 2000 at http://hinesj.er.usgs.gov.
National Audobon Society, 2000. "Birdsource" (On-line). Accessed 11/24/00 at http//:birdsource.cornell.edu.
Robbins, C., B. Bruun, H. Zim. 1996. Birds of North America. New York: Western Publishing Company.