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Wilsonia pusilla (1 Viewer)

Peter Kovalik

Peter Kovalik

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Slovakia
IRWIN, D. E., IRWIN, J. H. and SMITH, T. B. (2011), Genetic variation and seasonal migratory connectivity in Wilson’s warblers (Wilsonia pusilla): species-level differences in nuclear DNA between western and eastern populations. Molecular Ecology, 20: no. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05159.x
Abstract
 
Mysticete said:
I have to say...Pileated Warbler is an AWESOME name
Click to expand...

Arghhhhhhhhhh ! That's in the same pretentious camp as Oleaginous ( what was wrong with "Oily", means the same ), Supercilliaried ( Eyebrowed - not Eye-browed - it's got an eyebrow not a brow with an eye on it ) and more than a few more neotropical jobbies. Wilson's and Black-capped seem fine to me.

Chris
 
Hmm, I have to reconsider - Mysticete makes a good point about using Black-capped for pusilla. That would avoid the whole messy 'which 'Wilson's' do you mean - the old, broader one, or the new, narrow one' mess which I abhor (see the Winter Wren split thread). Sorry, Chris!
 
The eastern birds will be Pileolated Warblers (pronounced "PILL-ee-o-lay-ted") and the western birds will be Pileolated Warblers (pronounced "PIE-lee-o-lay-ted").
 
Peter Kovalik said:
IRWIN, D. E., IRWIN, J. H. and SMITH, T. B. (2011), Genetic variation and seasonal migratory connectivity in Wilson’s warblers (Wilsonia pusilla): species-level differences in nuclear DNA between western and eastern populations. Molecular Ecology, 20: no. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05159.x
Abstract
Click to expand...

I can't get to the actual article, but the question, as always, is "what happens to these birds in British Columbia" (AKA the great contact zone). The abstract hints as if they are discrete.

Also, east/west is a poor choice of distinction in this taxa pair - the taiga birds breed farther west than most (all? - who is in the Aleutians?) of the pacific/great basin subspecies.
 
Kirk Roth said:
Also, east/west is a poor choice of distinction in this taxa pair - the taiga birds breed farther west than most (all? - who is in the Aleutians?) of the pacific/great basin subspecies.
Click to expand...
  • pileolata - from Alaska south through interior British Columbia and the Rocky Mountains to northern New Mexico (has been referred to as 'Alaska Pileolated Warbler', eg, www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/grpo/birds172.htm)
  • chryseola - from southwestern British Columbia through southern California

  • pusilla - from Alberta and the Northwest Territories to the east coast of Canada
Also: ibc.lynxeds.com/species/wilsons-warbler-wilsonia-pusilla
 
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Yeah this is a definite case where Wilson's should not be retained for one form. It adds an added area of confusion to what is already a potentially difficult (but according to Sibley possible) id of forms.

The paper suggests in a round about way that more work is needed in the contact zones before most people (AOU) will recognize the split as valid.
 
lewis20126 said:
Black-capped Wilsonia & Yellow-crowned Wilsonia?

(analogy with Zeldonia?!)

Except that pusilla is no longer in Wilsonia: pusilla and canadensis have been moved to Cardellina, and citrina, the type species of Wilsonia, is now in Setophaga.

Maybe we should keep Wilsonia as the English name anyway, to humor Alexander Wilson (and the Society and Journal named after him).

Andy
Click to expand...
 
Part of the former genus Parula is now in Setophaga as well. Does that mean that Northern Parula and Tropical Parula will be renamed?
 
Richard Klim said:
  • pileolata - from Alaska south through interior British Columbia and the Rocky Mountains to northern New Mexico (has been referred to as 'Alaska Pileolated Warbler', eg, www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/grpo/birds172.htm)
  • chryseola - from southwestern British Columbia through southern California

  • pusilla - from Alberta and the Northwest Territories to the east coast of Canada
Also: ibc.lynxeds.com/species/wilsons-warbler-wilsonia-pusilla
Click to expand...

Yikes, you're right! In that case, then "taiga" is the misnomer...

This is a curious distribution - more along the lines of Northern Flicker than, say, Yellow-rumped Warbler or Fox Sparrow or thrush taxa. Is this due to a lack of ecological (ie habitat) specificity in Wilson's Warblers? If so, what keeps the populations separate? Or rather, how does pileolata keep pusilla out of Alaska?
 
Ruiz‐Sánchez et al 2015 pdf

jacana said:
Ruiz‐Sánchez, A., Renton, K., Landgrave‐Ramírez, R., Mora‐Aguilar, E. F., & Rojas‐Soto, O. (2015). Ecological niche variation in the Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla) complex. Journal of Avian Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jav.00531
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jav.00531/abstract

Supports splitting into Eastern and Western forms.
Click to expand...
Ruiz‐Sánchez et al 2015. J Avian Biol 46(5): 516–527. [pdf]
 
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