Red-faced Warbler

Overview

Red-faced Warbler: Medium-sized warbler with gray upperparts, white nape and rump, and paler gray underparts. Forehead, throat, and upper breast are bright red. The crown and ear patches are black. Gray tail is long and square tipped. Eats mostly spiders and insects which it finds in tree branches.

Range and Habitat

Red-faced Warbler: Breeds in southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. Spends winters in the tropics. Found in montane coniferous forests.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Red-faced Warbler is the only North American warbler with a bright reddish face and upper breasts.
Although they appear to be monogamous, they exhibit high rates of extra-pair copulations.
Almost 75% of nests have at least one young bird sired by a male other than the territorial male.
They have a quirky habit of flicking their tail sideways while feeding.
A group of red-faced warblers are collectively known as an "embarrassment" of warblers.

The Red-faced Warbler has a large range, estimated globally at 390,000 square kilometers. Native to El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, the United States and Mexico, this bird prefers subtropical or tropical forest ecosystems. The global population of this bird is estimated at 430,000 individuals and does not show signs of decline that would necessitate inclusion on the IUCN Red List. For this reason, the current evaluation status of the Red-faced Warbler is Least Concern.