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{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{Taxobox
{{Speciesbox
| image = Wrentit edit.jpg
| image = Wrentit edit.jpg
| image_width =
| image_caption =
| status = LC
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref>{{IUCN|id=22716861 |title=''Chamaea fasciata'' |assessor=BirdLife International |assessor-link=BirdLife International |version=2013.2 |year=2012 |accessdate=26 November 2013}}</ref>
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2016 |title=''Chamaea fasciata'' |volume=2016 |page=e.T22716861A94514854 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22716861A94514854.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| genus = Chamaea
⚫
| parent_authority = [[William Gambel|Gambel]], 1847
| phylum = [[Chordata]]
| classis = [[Aves]]
| species = fasciata
⚫
| authority = ([[William Gambel|Gambel]], 1845)
| ordo = [[Passeriformes]]
⚫
| range_map = Chamaea fasciata map.svg
| familia = [[Sylviidae]]
| genus = '''''Chamaea'''''
⚫
| genus_authority = [[William Gambel|Gambel]], 1847
| species = '''''C. fasciata'''''
⚫
| binomial = ''Chamaea fasciata''
⚫
| binomial_authority = ([[William Gambel|Gambel]], 1845)
}}
}}
⚫
The '''wrentit''' (''Chamaea fasciata'') is a small [[bird]] that lives in [[chaparral]], [[California oak woodland|oak woodlands]], and bushland on the western coast of [[North America]]. It is the [[Monotypic taxon|only species]] in the [[genus]] '''''Chamaea'''''.


⚫
The '''wrentit''' ('''''Chamaea fasciata''''') is a small [[bird]] that lives in [[chaparral]], [[California oak woodland|oak woodlands]], and bushland on the western coast of [[North America]]. It is the [[Monotypic taxon|only species]] in the [[genus]] '''''Chamaea'''''.
⚫
Its [[systematics]] have been the subject of much debate, the wrentit having been placed in many different [[family (biology)|families]] by different authors for as long as it has been known to science. Its common name reflects the uncertainty, and its external resemblance to both [[Paridae|tits]] and [[wren]]s. It is by no means closely related to either however.

⚫
Its [[systematics]] have been the subject of much debate, the wrentit having been placed in many different [[family (biology)|families]] by different authors for as long as it has been known to science. Its common name reflects the uncertainty, and its external resemblance to both [[Paridae|tits]] and [[wren]]s. It is not related to either, however. More recent and comprehensive phylogenetic studies support it belonging to the [[parrotbill]]s.


==Description==
==Description==
[[File:Wrentit.ogg|thumb|Wrentit song]]
[[File:Wrentit.ogg|thumb|Wrentit song]]
The wrentit is a small, {{convert|15|cm|in|abbr=on}} bird with uniform dull olive, brown, or grayish [[plumage]]. It has short wings and a long tail often held high (hence the comparison to wrens). It has a short [[beak|bill]] and a pale iris. Given its retiring nature and loud voice, the wrentit is more likely to be detected by its call than by sight. The distinct sound that it makes is similar to the sound of a ping-pong ball falling on the table.
The wrentit is a small, {{convert|15|cm|in|abbr=on|adj=on}} bird with uniform dull olive, brown, or grayish [[plumage]]. It has short wings and a long tail often held high (hence the comparison to wrens). It has a short [[beak|bill]] and a pale iris. Given its retiring nature and loud voice, the wrentit is more likely to be detected by its call than by sight. The distinct sound that it makes is similar to the sound of a ping-pong ball falling on the table.


==Systematics==
==Systematics==
The wrentit has been variously placed in its own family, the Chamaeidae, or with the [[long-tailed tit]]s (Aegithalidae), the true tits and chickadees ([[Paridae]]), the "Old World warblers" ([[Sylviidae]]), and with the "Old World babblers" ([[Timaliidae]]). The [[American Ornithologists' Union]] places the wrentit in the latter family, giving it the distinction of being the only babbler known from the [[New World]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Check-list of North American Birds | year = 1998–2006 | url = http://www.aou.org/checklist/index.php3 | accessdate = 4 May 2007| publisher = American Ornithologists' Union |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070428092938/http://www.aou.org/checklist/index.php3 |archivedate = 28 April 2007}}</ref> This is based on [[DNA-DNA hybridization]] studies,<ref>{{cite journal|first=Charles G. |last=Sibley |first2= Jon E.|last2= Ahlquist|url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/condor/v084n01/p0040-p0044.pdf|title= The Relationships of the Wrentit as Indicated by DNA-DNA Hybridization|journal= The Condor|volume= 84|issue=1|year=1982|pages= 40–44|doi=10.2307/1367818}}</ref> which are [[phenetic]] however and therefore not considered methodologically adequate today.{{Citation needed|date=December 2011}}
The wrentit has been variously placed in its own family, the Chamaeidae, or with the [[long-tailed tit]]s (Aegithalidae), the true tits and chickadees ([[Paridae]]), the "Old World warblers" ([[Sylviidae]]), and with the "Old World babblers" ([[Timaliidae]]). The [[American Ornithologists' Union]] places the wrentit in the latter family, giving it the distinction of being the only babbler known from the [[New World]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Check-list of North American Birds | year = 1998–2006 | url = http://www.aou.org/checklist/index.php3 | access-date = 4 May 2007| publisher = American Ornithologists' Union |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070428092938/http://www.aou.org/checklist/index.php3 |archive-date = 28 April 2007}}</ref> This is based on [[DNA–DNA hybridization]] studies,<ref>{{cite journal|first1=Charles G. |last1=Sibley |first2= Jon E.|last2= Ahlquist|url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/condor/v084n01/p0040-p0044.pdf|title= The Relationships of the Wrentit as Indicated by DNA-DNA Hybridization|journal= The Condor|volume= 84|issue=1|year=1982|pages= 40–44|doi=10.2307/1367818|jstor=1367818 }}</ref> which are [[phenetic]], however, and therefore not considered methodologically adequate today.{{Citation needed|date=December 2011}}


Through [[DNA sequence]] analysis, it was subsequently discovered that the wrentit was more closely allied to ''[[Sylvia (bird)|Sylvia]]'' warblers and some aberrant "babblers".<ref>{{cite journal|last=Cibois|first=Alice |year=2003|title= Mitochondrial DNA Phylogeny of Babblers (Timaliidae)|journal=[[Auk (journal)|Auk]]|jstor=4090138|volume=120|issue=1|pages=1–20|doi=10.1642/0004-8038(2003)120[0035:MDPOBT]2.0.CO;2}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Pasquet|first= Eric|last2=Bourdon|first2= Estelle|last3= Kalyakin|first3=Mikhail V. |last4= Cibois|first4= Alice |year=2006|title= The fulvettas (''Alcippe''), Timaliidae, Aves): a polyphyletic group|journal=[[Zoologica Scripta]]|volume=35|pages=559–566|doi=10.1111/j.1463-6409.2006.00253.x|issue=6}}</ref> These consequently must be placed in the [[Sylviidae]] family together with the wrentit and the [[parrotbill]]s which also turned out to be close relatives. Thus, the wrentit is the only American species of the "true" or sylviid warblers. Peculiarly, the [[Dartford warbler]] and close relatives like [[Marmora's warbler]] bear an uncanny resemblance to the wrentit;<ref>{{cite journal|last=Helbig|first= A. J.|year=2001|contribution=Phylogeny and biogeography of the genus ''Sylvia''|editor=Shirihai, Hadoram|title=Sylvia warblers|pages= 24–29|publisher= Princeton University Press|location= Princeton, N.J.|isbn =0-691-08833-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Jønsson|first=Knud A.|last2=Fjeldså|first2=Jon |year=2006|title=A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds (Aves: Passeri)|journal=[[Zoologica Scripta]]|volume=35|issue=2|pages=149–186|doi=10.1111/j.1463-6409.2006.00221.x}}</ref> their ecology is quite similar indeed as all are birds of [[Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub|Mediterranean scrub]]. However, [[biogeography]] and the molecular data build a strong case for this similarity being a case of [[convergent evolution]] between birds that are close relatives but by far not as close as their appearance would suggest.
Through [[DNA sequence]] analysis, it was subsequently discovered that the wrentit was more closely allied to ''[[Sylvia (bird)|Sylvia]]'' warblers and some aberrant "babblers".<ref>{{cite journal|last=Cibois|first=Alice |year=2003|title= Mitochondrial DNA Phylogeny of Babblers (Timaliidae)|journal=[[Auk (journal)|Auk]]|jstor=4090138|volume=120|issue=1|pages=1–20|doi=10.1642/0004-8038(2003)120[0035:MDPOBT]2.0.CO;2|s2cid=85629890 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Pasquet|first1= Eric|last2=Bourdon|first2= Estelle|last3= Kalyakin|first3=Mikhail V. |last4= Cibois|first4= Alice |year=2006|title= The fulvettas (''Alcippe''), Timaliidae, Aves): a polyphyletic group|journal=[[Zoologica Scripta]]|volume=35|pages=559–566|doi=10.1111/j.1463-6409.2006.00253.x|issue=6|s2cid= 84546365}}</ref> These consequently must be placed in the family [[Sylviidae]] together with the wrentit and the [[parrotbill]]s which also turned out to be close relatives. Thus, the wrentit is the only American species of the "true" or sylviid warblers. Peculiarly, the [[Dartford warbler]] and close relatives like [[Marmora's warbler]] bear an uncanny resemblance to the wrentit;<ref>{{cite book|last=Helbig|first= A. J.|year=2001|chapter=Phylogeny and biogeography of the genus ''Sylvia''|editor=Shirihai, Hadoram|title=Sylvia warblers|pages= 24–29|publisher= Princeton University Press|location= Princeton, N.J.|isbn =0-691-08833-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Jønsson|first1=Knud A.|last2=Fjeldså|first2=Jon |year=2006|title=A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds (Aves: Passeri)|journal=[[Zoologica Scripta]]|volume=35|issue=2|pages=149–186|doi=10.1111/j.1463-6409.2006.00221.x|s2cid=85317440}}</ref> their ecology is quite similar indeed, as all are birds of [[Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub|Mediterranean scrub]]. However, [[biogeography]] and the molecular data build a strong case for this similarity being a case of [[convergent evolution]] between birds that are close relatives but by far not as close as their appearance would suggest.


Alice Cibois suggested that as some babblers are closer to typical warblers than these are to [[marsh-warbler]]s for example, the Sylviidae should be merged into the Timaliidae.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Cibois|first=Alice |year=2003|title= ''Sylvia'' is a babbler: taxonomic implications for the families Sylviidae and Timaliidae|journal=[[Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club]]|volume=123|pages= 257–261}}</ref> As such an abolishing of the [[senior synonym]] would require a formal [[International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature]] ruling and the typical warblers and relatives are still a [[monophyletic]] group at present, this proposal is not advanced by most researchers until the remaining Sylviidae and Timaliidae genera are studied as regards their relationships.{{Citation needed|date=December 2011}}
Alice Cibois suggested that as some babblers are closer to typical warblers than these are to [[marsh-warbler]]s for example, the Sylviidae should be merged into the Timaliidae.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Cibois|first=Alice |year=2003|title= ''Sylvia'' is a babbler: taxonomic implications for the families Sylviidae and Timaliidae|journal=[[Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club]]|volume=123|pages= 257–261 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/40416304 }}</ref> As such an abolishing of the [[senior synonym]] would require a formal [[International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature]] ruling and the typical warblers and relatives are still a [[monophyletic]] group at present, this proposal is not advanced by most researchers until the remaining Sylviidae and Timaliidae genera are studied as regards their relationships.{{Citation needed|date=December 2011}}

In 2019, a major taxonomic revision of species formerly classified as "babblers" recovered ''Chamaea'' as being most closely allied with the [[parrotbill]]s and [[fulvetta]]s, which are otherwise an exclusively Asian group. Due to their phylogenetic and morphological distinctiveness, the family [[Parrotbill|Paradoxornithidae]] was revived for this group, including the wrentit.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Cai |first1=Tianlong |last2=Cibois |first2=Alice |last3=Alström |first3=Per |last4=Moyle |first4=Robert G. |last5=Kennedy |first5=Jonathan D. |last6=Shao |first6=Shimiao |last7=Zhang |first7=Ruiying |last8=Irestedt |first8=Martin |last9=Ericson |first9=Per G.P. |last10=Gelang |first10=Magnus |last11=Qu |first11=Yanhua |date=January 2019 |title=Near-complete phylogeny and taxonomic revision of the world's babblers (Aves: Passeriformes) |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=130 |pages=346–356 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2018.10.010 |pmid=30321696 |s2cid=53216358 |issn=1055-7903|doi-access=free |bibcode=2019MolPE.130..346C }}</ref>


==Distribution==
==Distribution==
The wrentit is a sedentary (non-[[bird migration|migratory]]) resident of a narrow strip of coastal habitat in the western coast of [[North America]], being found from [[Oregon]] south through [[California]], to [[Baja California]], the north state of the [[Baja California peninsula]].
[[File:Wrentit-17DEC2016.jpg|alt=Wrentit|right|thumb|Wrentit in the [[Marin Headlands]] on the California coast.]]
The wrentit is a sedentary (non-[[bird migration|migratory]]) resident of a narrow strip of coastal habitat along the western coast of [[North America]], being found from [[Oregon]] south through [[California]], to [[Baja California]], the northern state of the [[Baja California peninsula]].


It is usually restricted to certain [[California chaparral and woodlands|chaparral and woodland]] [[habitat]]s. It nests in {{convert|1|m}} high shrubs such as [[Toxicodendron diversilobum|poison oak]] (''Toxicodendron diversilobum''), [[coyote bush]] (''Baccharis pilularis'') and [[California blackberry]] (''Rubus ursinus''). Logging and other changes in habitat have led to this species expanding its range recently, particularly northwards.
It is usually restricted to certain [[California chaparral and woodlands|chaparral and woodland]] [[habitat]]s. It nests in {{convert|1|m|ft|0}} high shrubs such as [[Toxicodendron diversilobum|poison oak]] (''Toxicodendron diversilobum''), [[coyote bush]] (''Baccharis pilularis'') and [[California blackberry]] (''Rubus ursinus''). Logging and other changes in habitat have led to this species expanding its range recently, particularly northwards.


==Ecology==
==Ecology==
Line 41: Line 39:


The wrentit feeds by skulking through dense scrub [[Gleaning (birds)|gleaning]] exposed insects found by sight. It feeds primarily on [[beetle]]s, [[caterpillar]]s, bugs, and [[ant]]s, but also takes small berries and seeds.
The wrentit feeds by skulking through dense scrub [[Gleaning (birds)|gleaning]] exposed insects found by sight. It feeds primarily on [[beetle]]s, [[caterpillar]]s, bugs, and [[ant]]s, but also takes small berries and seeds.

==See also==
*[[California chaparral and woodland]]
*[[California oak woodland]]s
*[[Chaparral]]


==References==
==References==
Line 51: Line 44:


==Further reading==
==Further reading==
*{{cite journal|last=Collar|first= N. J.|last2=Robson|first2=C. |year=2007|contribution=Family Timaliidae (Babblers)|pages=70–291 |editor=del Hoyo, J. |editor2=Elliott, A. |editor3=Christie, D. A. |title=[[Handbook of the Birds of the World]]. Volume 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees|publisher=Lynx Edicions|location=Barcelona}}
*{{cite book|last1=Collar|first1= N. J.|last2=Robson|first2=C. |year=2007|chapter=Family Timaliidae (Babblers)|pages=70–291 |editor=del Hoyo, J. |editor2=Elliott, A. |editor3=Christie, D. A. |title=[[Handbook of the Birds of the World]]. Volume 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees|publisher=Lynx Edicions|location=Barcelona}}
* [https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wrentit/ Wrentit Species Account] – Cornell Lab of Ornithology
<!-- remain to be checked:

* Alexander JD, Seavy NE & Hosten PE. (2007). ''Using conservation plans and bird monitoring to evaluate ecological effects of management: An example with fuels reduction activities in southwest Oregon''. Forest Ecology & Management. vol '''238''', no 1-3. p. 375-383.
* Baker M, Nur N & Geupel GR. (1995). ''Correcting biased estimates of dispersal and survival due to limited study area: Theory and an application using wrentits''. Condor. vol '''97''', no 3. p. 663-674.
* Ballard G, Geupel GR & Nur N. (2004). ''Influence of mist-netting intensity on demographic investigations of avian populations''. Studies in Avian Biology. vol '''29''', p. 21-27.
* Baptista LF. (1972). ''Cowbird Parasitism on the White-Crowned Sparrow and Wren-Tit in the San-Francisco Bay Area''. Auk. vol '''89''', no 4. p. 879-882.
* Barhoum DN & Burns KJ. (2002). ''Phylogenetic relationships of the Wrentit based on mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences''. Condor. vol '''104''', no 4. p. 740-749.
* Bennett KD. (2004). ''Continuing the debate on the role of Quaternary environmental change for macroevolution''. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B Biological Sciences. vol '''359''', no 1442. p. 295-303.
* Browning MR. (1992). ''A new subspecies of Chamaea fasciata (Wrentit) from Oregon (Aves: Timaliinae)''. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. vol '''105''', no 3. p. 414-419.
* Burns KJ & Barhoum DN. (2006). ''Population-level history of the wrentit (Chamaea fasciata): Implications for comparative phylogeography in the California Floristic Province''. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. vol '''38''', no 1. p. 117-129.
* Eberhardt C & Baptista LF. (1977). ''Intraspecific and Interspecific Song Mimesis in California USA Song Sparrows''. Bird Banding. vol '''48''', no 3. p. 193-205.
* Flannery ME & Gardali T. (2000). ''Incomplete first prebasic molt in the Wrentit''. Western Birds. vol '''31''', no 4. p. 249-251.
* Fleischer RC, Boarman WI & Cody ML. (1985). ''Asynchrony of Song Series in Bewicks Wren Thyromanes-Bewickii and Wren Tit Chamaea-Fasciata''. Animal Behaviour. vol '''33''', no 2. p. 674-676.
* Geupel, G. R., and G. Ballard. 2002. ''Wrentit (Chamaea fasciata)''. In ''The Birds of North America'', No. 654 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.
* Geupel GR & Desante DF. (1990). ''Incidence and Determinants of Double Brooding in Wren-Tits''. Condor. vol '''92''', no 1. p. 67-75.
* Nur N, Geupel GR & Ballard G. (2004). ''Estimates of adult survival, capture probability, and recapture probability: Evaluating and validating constant-effort mist netting''. Studies in Avian Biology. vol '''29''', p. 63-70.
* Patten MA & Bolger DT. (2003). ''Variation in top-down control of avian reproductive success across a fragmentation gradient''. Oikos. vol '''101''', no 3. p. 479-488.
* Preston KL & Rotenberry JT. (2006). ''Independent effects of food and predator-mediated processes on annual fecundity in a songbird''. Ecology. vol '''87''', no 1. p. 160-168.
* Preston KL & Rotenberry JT. (2006). ''The role of food, nest predation, and climate in timing of Wrentit reproductive activities''. Condor. vol '''108''', no 4. p. 832-841.
* Ralph CJ, Paton PWC & Taylor CA. (1991). ''Habitat Association Patterns of Breeding Birds and Small Mammals in Douglas-Fir-Hardwood Stands in Northwestern California and Southwestern Oregon''. U S Forest Service General Technical Report PNW. vol '''285''', p. 379-393.
* Silkey M, Nur N & Geupel GR. (1999). ''The use of mist-net capture rates to monitor annual variation in abundance: A validation study''. Condor. vol '''101''', no 2. p. 288-298. -->


== External links ==
==External links==
{{commons category|Chamaea fasciata|Wrentit}}
{{Commons category|Chamaea fasciata|Wrentit}}
{{wikispecies|Chamaea fasciata}}
{{Wikispecies|Chamaea fasciata}}
* {{InternetBirdCollection|wrentit-chamaea-fasciata|Wrentit}}
* {{InternetBirdCollection|wrentit-chamaea-fasciata|Wrentit}}
* {{VIREO|wrentit|Wrentit}}
* {{VIREO|wrentit|Wrentit}}
* {{IUCN_Map|22716861|Chamaea fasciata}}
* {{IUCN_Map|22716861|Chamaea fasciata}}


{{Passerida|S.|state=collapsed}}
{{taxonbar}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1048896}}


[[Category:Sylviidae]]
[[Category:Paradoxornithidae]]
[[Category:Birds of the United States]]
[[Category:Birds of the United States]]
[[Category:Birds of Mexico]]
[[Category:Birds of Mexico]]
[[Category:Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands]]
[[Category:Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands]]
[[Category:Animals described in 1845]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1845]]
[[Category:Taxa named by William Gambel]]

Latest revision as of 20:18, 1 July 2024

Wrentit
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Paradoxornithidae
Genus: Chamaea
Gambel, 1847
Species:
C. fasciata
Binomial name
Chamaea fasciata
(Gambel, 1845)

The wrentit (Chamaea fasciata) is a small bird that lives in chaparral, oak woodlands, and bushland on the western coast of North America. It is the only species in the genus Chamaea.

Its systematics have been the subject of much debate, the wrentit having been placed in many different families by different authors for as long as it has been known to science. Its common name reflects the uncertainty, and its external resemblance to both tits and wrens. It is not related to either, however. More recent and comprehensive phylogenetic studies support it belonging to the parrotbills.

Description

[edit]
Wrentit song

The wrentit is a small, 15 cm (5.9 in) bird with uniform dull olive, brown, or grayish plumage. It has short wings and a long tail often held high (hence the comparison to wrens). It has a short bill and a pale iris. Given its retiring nature and loud voice, the wrentit is more likely to be detected by its call than by sight. The distinct sound that it makes is similar to the sound of a ping-pong ball falling on the table.

Systematics

[edit]

The wrentit has been variously placed in its own family, the Chamaeidae, or with the long-tailed tits (Aegithalidae), the true tits and chickadees (Paridae), the "Old World warblers" (Sylviidae), and with the "Old World babblers" (Timaliidae). The American Ornithologists' Union places the wrentit in the latter family, giving it the distinction of being the only babbler known from the New World.[2] This is based on DNA–DNA hybridization studies,[3] which are phenetic, however, and therefore not considered methodologically adequate today.[citation needed]

Through DNA sequence analysis, it was subsequently discovered that the wrentit was more closely allied to Sylvia warblers and some aberrant "babblers".[4][5] These consequently must be placed in the family Sylviidae together with the wrentit and the parrotbills which also turned out to be close relatives. Thus, the wrentit is the only American species of the "true" or sylviid warblers. Peculiarly, the Dartford warbler and close relatives like Marmora's warbler bear an uncanny resemblance to the wrentit;[6][7] their ecology is quite similar indeed, as all are birds of Mediterranean scrub. However, biogeography and the molecular data build a strong case for this similarity being a case of convergent evolution between birds that are close relatives but by far not as close as their appearance would suggest.

Alice Cibois suggested that as some babblers are closer to typical warblers than these are to marsh-warblers for example, the Sylviidae should be merged into the Timaliidae.[8] As such an abolishing of the senior synonym would require a formal International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature ruling and the typical warblers and relatives are still a monophyletic group at present, this proposal is not advanced by most researchers until the remaining Sylviidae and Timaliidae genera are studied as regards their relationships.[citation needed]

In 2019, a major taxonomic revision of species formerly classified as "babblers" recovered Chamaea as being most closely allied with the parrotbills and fulvettas, which are otherwise an exclusively Asian group. Due to their phylogenetic and morphological distinctiveness, the family Paradoxornithidae was revived for this group, including the wrentit.[9]

Distribution

[edit]
Wrentit
Wrentit in the Marin Headlands on the California coast.

The wrentit is a sedentary (non-migratory) resident of a narrow strip of coastal habitat along the western coast of North America, being found from Oregon south through California, to Baja California, the northern state of the Baja California peninsula.

It is usually restricted to certain chaparral and woodland habitats. It nests in 1 metre (3 ft) high shrubs such as poison oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum), coyote bush (Baccharis pilularis) and California blackberry (Rubus ursinus). Logging and other changes in habitat have led to this species expanding its range recently, particularly northwards.

Ecology

[edit]

Wrentits mate for life, forming pair bonds only a few months after hatching. Both sexes sing; the faster rhythm of the male's song is one of the few ways to differentiate the sexes. Both sexes also defend their territory year-round and participate in building the nest, a four-stage process that takes about two weeks. The three or four eggs are incubated for 14 days, again by both sexes. The chicks fledge after 15 days (at which stage they are unable to fly) and are fed by their parents for another 40 days.

The wrentit feeds by skulking through dense scrub gleaning exposed insects found by sight. It feeds primarily on beetles, caterpillars, bugs, and ants, but also takes small berries and seeds.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ BirdLife International (2016). "Chamaea fasciata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22716861A94514854. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22716861A94514854.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Check-list of North American Birds". American Ornithologists' Union. 1998–2006. Archived from the original on 28 April 2007. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
  3. ^ Sibley, Charles G.; Ahlquist, Jon E. (1982). "The Relationships of the Wrentit as Indicated by DNA-DNA Hybridization" (PDF). The Condor. 84 (1): 40–44. doi:10.2307/1367818. JSTOR 1367818.
  4. ^ Cibois, Alice (2003). "Mitochondrial DNA Phylogeny of Babblers (Timaliidae)". Auk. 120 (1): 1–20. doi:10.1642/0004-8038(2003)120[0035:MDPOBT]2.0.CO;2. JSTOR 4090138. S2CID 85629890.
  5. ^ Pasquet, Eric; Bourdon, Estelle; Kalyakin, Mikhail V.; Cibois, Alice (2006). "The fulvettas (Alcippe), Timaliidae, Aves): a polyphyletic group". Zoologica Scripta. 35 (6): 559–566. doi:10.1111/j.1463-6409.2006.00253.x. S2CID 84546365.
  6. ^ Helbig, A. J. (2001). "Phylogeny and biogeography of the genus Sylvia". In Shirihai, Hadoram (ed.). Sylvia warblers. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. pp. 24–29. ISBN 0-691-08833-0.
  7. ^ Jønsson, Knud A.; Fjeldså, Jon (2006). "A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds (Aves: Passeri)". Zoologica Scripta. 35 (2): 149–186. doi:10.1111/j.1463-6409.2006.00221.x. S2CID 85317440.
  8. ^ Cibois, Alice (2003). "Sylvia is a babbler: taxonomic implications for the families Sylviidae and Timaliidae". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 123: 257–261.
  9. ^ Cai, Tianlong; Cibois, Alice; Alström, Per; Moyle, Robert G.; Kennedy, Jonathan D.; Shao, Shimiao; Zhang, Ruiying; Irestedt, Martin; Ericson, Per G.P.; Gelang, Magnus; Qu, Yanhua (January 2019). "Near-complete phylogeny and taxonomic revision of the world's babblers (Aves: Passeriformes)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 130: 346–356. Bibcode:2019MolPE.130..346C. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2018.10.010. ISSN 1055-7903. PMID 30321696. S2CID 53216358.

Further reading

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  • Collar, N. J.; Robson, C. (2007). "Family Timaliidae (Babblers)". In del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Christie, D. A. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. pp. 70–291.
  • Wrentit Species Account – Cornell Lab of Ornithology
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