''Setophaga'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

birds Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

of the

New World warbler The New World warblers or wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds that make up the family Parulidae and are restricted to the New World. They are not closely related to Old World warblers or Australian warblers. Most ...

family Parulidae. It contains at least 33

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

. The males in breeding plumage are often highly colorful. The ''Setophaga'' warblers are an example of

adaptive radiation In evolutionary biology, adaptive radiation is a process in which organisms diversify rapidly from an ancestral species into a multitude of new forms, particularly when a change in the environment makes new resources available, alters biotic int ...

with the various

using different feeding techniques and often feeding in different parts of the same tree. Most ''Setophaga'' species are long-range migrants, wintering in or near the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...

tropics and seasonally migrating to breed in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. In contrast, two ''Setophaga'' species, the palm warbler and yellow-rumped warbler, have winter ranges that extend along the Atlantic coast of North America as far north as Nova Scotia.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Setophaga'' was introduced by the English naturalist William Swainson in 1827. The

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

was subsequently designated by Swainson in the same year as the

American redstart The American redstart (''Setophaga ruticilla'') is a New World warbler. It is unrelated to the Old World (common) redstart. Taxonomy The American redstart was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his ''Systema Naturae'' un ...

''Setophaga ruticilla''. The genus name is from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

''ses'', "moth", and ', "eating". Genetic research has suggested that ''Dendroica'' and ''Setophaga'' should be merged. This change has been accepted by both the North American and South American Classification Committees of the

American Ornithological Society The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its m ...

A Classification of the Bird Species of South America
accessed 17 August 2016 and the

IOC World Bird List ''Birds of the World: Recommended English Names'' is a paperback book, written by Frank Gill and Minturn Wright on behalf of the International Ornithologists' Union. The book is an attempt to produce a standardized set of English names for all b ...

.IOC World Bird Lis
New World warblers & oropendolas
/ref> Most members of the genus as currently recognized were traditionally classified as the genus ''Dendroica'', 29 species at the time of the merger. The only member of the genus ''Setophaga'' prior to the merger was the

. As the name ''Setophaga'' (published in 1827) takes priority over ''Dendroica'' (published in 1842), those who accept the merger transfer all the species below to ''Setophaga''.

List of species

Adelaide's warbler Adelaide's warbler (''Setophaga adelaidae'') is a bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico belonging to the genus ''Setophaga'' of the family Parulidae. The species is named after Adelaide Swift, daughter of Robert Swift, the person who cap ...

, ''Setophaga adelaidae'' *

, ''Setophaga ruticilla'' *

American yellow warbler The yellow warbler (''Setophaga petechia'') is a New World warbler species. Yellow warblers are the most widespread species in the diverse genus ''Setophaga'', breeding in almost the whole of North America, the Caribbean, and down to northern S ...

, ''Setophaga petechia'' *

Arrowhead warbler The arrowhead warbler (''Setophaga pharetra'') is a species of bird in the family Parulidae. It is endemic to Jamaica. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains ...

, ''Setophaga pharetra'' * Bahama warbler, ''Setophaga flavescens'' * Barbuda warbler, ''Setophaga subita'' *

Bay-breasted warbler The bay-breasted warbler (''Setophaga castanea'') is a small species of songbird in the New World warbler family, Parulidae. It is one of thirty-four species in the diverse genus ''Setophaga.'' Like all songbirds, or passerines, the species is cl ...

, ''Setophaga castanea'' *

Blackburnian warbler The Blackburnian warbler (''Setophaga fusca'') is a small New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America, from southern Canada, westwards to the southern Canadian Prairies, the Great Lakes region and New England, to North Carolina. Blackb ...

, ''Setophaga fusca'' *

Blackpoll warbler The blackpoll warbler (''Setophaga striata'') is a New World warbler. Breeding males are mostly black and white. They have a prominent black cap, white cheeks and white wing bars. The blackpoll breeds in forests of northern North America, from Al ...

, ''Setophaga striata'' *

Black-throated blue warbler The black-throated blue warbler (''Setophaga caerulescens'') is a small passerine bird of the New World warbler family. Its breeding ranges are located in the interior of deciduous and mixed coniferous forests in eastern North America. Over the ...

, ''Setophaga caerulescens'' *

Black-throated green warbler The black-throated green warbler (''Setophaga virens'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Description It has an olive-green crown, a yellow face with olive markings, a thin pointed bill, white wing bars, an olive-green back an ...

, ''Setophaga virens'' *

Black-throated grey warbler The black-throated gray warbler or black-throated grey warbler (''Setophaga nigrescens'') is a passerine bird of the New World warbler family Parulidae. It is long and has gray and white plumage with black markings. The male has the bold black ...

, ''Setophaga nigrescens'' *

Cape May warbler The Cape May warbler (''Setophaga tigrina'') is a species of New World warbler. It breeds in northern North America. Its breeding range spans all but the westernmost parts of southern Canada, the Great Lakes region, and New England. It is migrat ...

, ''Setophaga tigrina'' *

Cerulean warbler The cerulean warbler (''Setophaga cerulea'') is a small songbird in the family Parulidae. It is a long-distance migrant, breeding in eastern North American hardwood forests. In the non-breeding season, it winters on the eastern slope of the And ...

, ''Setophaga cerulea'' *

Chestnut-sided warbler The chestnut-sided warbler (''Setophaga pensylvanica'') is a New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America and in southern Canada westwards to the Canadian Prairies. They also breed in the Great Lakes region and in the eastern United St ...

, ''Setophaga pensylvanica'' *

Elfin woods warbler The elfin woods warbler (''Setophaga angelae'') is a species of bird endemic to Puerto Rico, where it is local and uncommon. Discovered in 1968 and described in 1972, it is the most recently described New World warbler (family Parulidae). The ...

, ''Setophaga angelae'' *

Golden-cheeked warbler The golden-cheeked warbler (''Setophaga chrysoparia'') is an endangered species of bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of ha ...

, ''Setophaga chrysoparia'' * Grace's warbler, ''Setophaga graciae'' *

Hermit warbler The hermit warbler (''Setophaga occidentalis'') is a small perching bird. It is a species of New World warbler or wood-warbler. They are a migratory bird, the breeding range spanning the majority of the west coast of the United States. Their wint ...

, ''Setophaga occidentalis'' *

Hooded warbler The hooded warbler (''Setophaga citrina'') is a New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America and across the eastern United States and into southernmost Canada (Ontario). It is migratory, wintering in Central America and the West Indies. ...

, ''Setophaga citrina'' *

Kirtland's warbler Kirtland's warbler (''Setophaga kirtlandii''), also known in Michigan by the common name jack pine bird, or the jack pine warbler, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family (Parulidae), named after Jared Potter Kirtland, an Ohio doctor ...

, ''Setophaga kirtlandii'' *

Magnolia warbler The magnolia warbler (''Setophaga magnolia'') is a member of the wood warbler family Parulidae. Etymology The genus name ''Setophaga'' is from Ancient Greek ''ses'', "moth", and ', "eating", and the specific ''magnolia'' refers to the type lo ...

, ''Setophaga magnolia'' *

Northern parula The northern parula (''Setophaga americana'') is a small New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southern Canada to Florida. Description The northern parula is one of the smaller North American migratory warblers, often being ...

, ''Setophaga americana'' *

Olive-capped warbler The olive-capped warbler (''Setophaga pityophila'') is a species of New World warbler that is native to the western and eastern ends of Cuba as well as Grand Bahama and the Abaco Islands in the Bahamas. Its natural habitat is pine forests ...

, ''Setophaga pityophila'' *

Palm warbler The palm warbler (''Setophaga palmarum'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Description Measurements: * Length: * Weight: * Wingspan: Taxonomy The species comprises two distinct subspecies that may merit specific stat ...

, ''Setophaga palmarum'' *

Pine warbler The pine warbler (''Setophaga pinus'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Description These birds have white bellies, two white wing bars, dark legs and thin, relatively long pointed bills; they have yellowish 'spectacles' ar ...

, ''Setophaga pinus'' *

Plumbeous warbler The plumbeous warbler (''Setophaga plumbea'') is a species of bird in the family Parulidae. It is found only in Dominica and Guadeloupe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest ...

, ''Setophaga plumbea'' *

Prairie warbler The prairie warbler (''Setophaga discolor'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Description These birds have yellow underparts with dark streaks on the flanks, and olive overparts with rusty streaks on the back; they have a ye ...

, ''Setophaga discolor'' * Saint Lucia warbler, ''Setophaga delicata'' *

Townsend's warbler Townsend's warbler (''Setophaga townsendi'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Taxonomy Townsend's warbler was species description, formally described in 1837 by the American naturalist John Kirk Townsend under the binomial nam ...

, ''Setophaga townsendi'' *

Tropical parula The tropical parula (''Setophaga pitiayumi'') is a small New World warbler. It breeds from southernmost Texas and northwest Mexico (Sonora) south through Central America to northern Argentina, including Trinidad and Tobago. This widespread and co ...

, ''Setophaga pitiayumi'' *

Vitelline warbler The vitelline warbler (''Setophaga vitellina'') is a songbird species in the New World warbler family (Parulidae). It is found in the Cayman Islands and on the Swan Islands in Honduras. Taxonomy This species is part of the large New World warbl ...

, ''Setophaga vitellina'' *

Myrtle warbler The myrtle warbler (''Setophaga coronata'') is a small New World warbler. It is considered a subspecies of the yellow-rumped warbler and its own species by different classification societies. The myrtle warbler has a northerly and easterly distri ...

, ''Setophaga coronata'' *

Audubon's warbler Audubon's warbler (''Setophaga auduboni'') is a small bird of the family Parulidae. This passerine bird was long known to be closely related to its eastern counterpart, the myrtle warbler, and at various times the two forms have been classed as ...

, ''Setophaga auduboni'' ** Black-fronted warbler, ''Setophaga auduboni nigrifrons'' * Goldman's warbler, ''Setophaga goldmani'' *

Yellow-throated warbler The yellow-throated warbler (''Setophaga dominica'') is a small migratory songbird species breeding in temperate North America. It belongs to the New World warbler family (Parulidae). Description In summer, male yellow-throated warblers displ ...

, ''Setophaga dominica'' *

Yellow-rumped warbler The yellow-rumped warbler (''Setophaga coronata'') is a regular North American bird species that can be commonly observed all across the continent. Its extensive distribution range connects both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of the U.S. as well ...

, ''Setophaga coronata''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q132908 Bird genera *