Northern Waterthrush

IDENTIFICATION: This warbler is very similar to the Louisiana Waterthrush, but is smaller overall, has a smaller bill, a narrower and more buffy eye line, more streaking on the throat, and browner legs. Length: 15 cm. Average weight in winter is 15-16 g., but as with other long distance migrants, it puts on lots of fat before its southbound migration, increasing its body weight to 24 g.

VOICE: Frequently gives a loud "chink" note (sharper and more metallic than the Louisiana WaterthrushÆs call note). Audio 2 (M. Oberle). May give a full song just before migrating north: a rapid, punctuated series of loud, ringing notes.

HABITAT: This species has the most specialized habitat preference of all the regular migrant warbler species. It prefers coastal mangrove swamps, with a few birds in streamside moist forests.

HABITS: The Northern Waterthrush bobs its tail and lower body as it hops along fallen tree trunks and mangrove roots and in shallow water and mudflats below the trees. It forages for flies, ants, beetles, waterboatmen, other insects; spiders, and occasionally tiny crabs. It feeds less often in the lower branches and leaves of the mangroves. Each bird maintains a winter feeding territory of about ╜ hectare. Like many other bird species, waterthrushes frequently bathe in water to clean their skin and feathers of parasites and dirt. They run into the water quickly, then run out and shake their feathers vigorously, and then repeat the process. During the breeding season in North American swamps, this species builds a nest of leaves and moss, lined with hair from moose, deer, or other local mammals. The female incubates 4-5 eggs for about 12 days. Both parents feed the young birds, which leave the nest about 10 days after hatching.

STATUS AND CONSERVATION: A common, winter resident. Although the North American breeding range is still extensive, mangroves in its winter range have been extensively cut. About half the original mangrove forest of Puerto Rico has been cut down, although many of the remaining areas are protected.

RANGE: Breeds in boreal forest swamps from central Alaska and Quebec south to northwestern Wyoming and West Virginia. It winters throughout the Caribbean and lowland Central America to northern Ecuador and northwestern Brazil. A regular place to see this species is in the mangroves along the boardwalk at Parque Central in San Juan, although it is much easier to hear than to see in the dark mangrove root system.

TAXONOMY: PASSERIFORMES; PARULIDAE

References

Arendt, W.J. 1992. Status of North American migrant landbirds in the Caribbean region: a summary. Pp. 143-171 in Ecology and conservation of neotropical migrant landbirds (J.M. Hagan III and D.W. Johnston, eds.) Smithsonian Instit. Press, Washington, D.C.

Bent, A.C. 1953. Life histories of North American wood warblers. Smithsonian Instit. U.S. National Museum Bull. 203. (Reprinted by Dover Press, NY, 1963).

Curson, J., D. Quinn, and D. Beadle. 1994. Warblers of the Americas: an identification guide. Houghton Mifflin, NY.

Dunn, J. and K. Garrett. 1997. A field guide to warblers of North America. Houghton Mifflin, NY.

Eaton, S. W. 1995. Northern Waterthrush (Seiurus noveboracensis). No. 182 in The birds of North America (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). Acad. Nat. Sci., Philadelphia, PA, and Am. Ornithol. Union, Washington, D.C.

Levey, D. J. and C. Martφnez del Rio. 2001. It takes guts (and more) to eat fruit: lessons from avian nutritional ecology. Auk. 118(4): 819-831.

PΘrez-Rivera, R. A., L. Ramφrez, J. Velßzquez, and A. Molina. 2003. Presencia durante todo el a±o de la Pizpita de Mangle (Seiurus noveboracensis) en Puerto Rico. J Carib Ornith 16(1):70-71.

Raffaele, H.A. 1989. A guide to the birds of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Princeton.

Raffaele, H.A. 1989. Una guía a las aves de Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes. Publishing Resources, Inc., Santurce, PR.

Raffaele, H.A., J.W. Wiley, O.H. Garrido, A.R. Keith, and J.I. Raffaele. 1998. Guide to the birds of the West Indies. Princeton.

Wunderle, J.M., Jr. and R.B. Waide. 1993. Distribution of overwintering nearctic migrants in the Bahamas and Greater Antilles. Condor 95:904-933.

Northern Waterthrush, Spanish text

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Photo: G. Beaton*


Photo: G. Beaton