Painted Redstart

Painted Redstart, adult

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A warbler of surpassing beauty, the Painted Redstart is a specialty of the borderlands of the American Southwest. The only member of its genus that regularly occurs in the United States, it is unique among American warblers for its vocalizations and its conspicuous foraging methods.

Description

• Small songbird.
• Black above.
• Large white patches on wings.
• Red lower breast and belly.
• White outer tail feathers.

• Size: 13-15 cm (5-6 in)
• Wingspan: 21 cm (8 in)
• Weight: 8-11 g (0.28-0.39 ounces)

Sex Differences

Sexes look alike.

Sound

Songs variable, generally consisting of repeated two-syllable phrases followed by one or more single-syllable chirps. Call a loud, low-pitched "cheeyu," widely described as similar to those of Pine Siskins, but quite unlike the calls of any other warblers

Conservation Status

The Painted Redstart is considered to be a relatively low conservation priority.

Other Names

Paruline à ailes blanches (French)
Pavito aliblanco, Chipe ala blanca (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• Like other "redstarts" in its genus, the Painted Redstart flashes its white wing patches and outer tail feathers when foraging. These action appear to flush insects that the redstart then pursues and captures.
• Despite its common name, the Painted Redstart is not particularly closely related to the American Redstart. Members of its genus, common in the Neotropics, are sometimes known as "whitestarts" to distinguish them. The name "redstart" was taken from a European thrush that has a bold reddish tail pattern.

Sources used to construct this page:

Barber, D. R., P. M. Barber, and P. G. Jablonski. 2000. Painted Redstart (Myioborus pictus). In The Birds of North America, No. 528 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.