On a Great South Bay Audubon (GSBAS) field trip last weekend we had a bird on Mine Road (between poles 38 and 39 I believe) that from all outward appearances was a pure Golden-winged Warbler (photos viewable here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jgluth_brb/ - courtesy of Steve D'Amato and Ken Thompson). The only problem was it sang only Blue-winged Warbler songs both typical and alternate types. Later, a bit farther down the road, we heard a typical Golden-winged song that ultimately was traced to a "pure" looking Blue-winged! Another group we ran into there had seen a Brewster's Warbler. To say that the BWWA/GWWA gene pool is muddied at this location (and most places the two species "coexist") would be an understatement. Now for the hypothetical: Despite the genetic melting pot along Mine Road, and given that the wood warblers as a whole must learn their songs (they're not "hard-wired"), could the bird we saw actually be a genetically pure GWWA? One that was simply surrounded by too many male BWWAs and too few (if any) male GWWAs during it's formative months to have learned the "proper" song? Or could it actually have adopted BWWA song types later in life in order to better compete for a mate of either species? Conversely, what benefit would it be for that BWWA to sing a GWWA song, given that female BWWAs have most likely outnumbered female GWWAs for years in that location? I suppose it's best to cover all the bases in order to pass on one's genes.
-- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
