Setophaga graciae

Phylogenetic analyses of sequences of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA (Lovette et al. 2010) indicate that all species formerly placed in Dendroica, one species formerly placed in Wilsonia (citrina), and two species formerly placed in Parula (americana and pitiayumi) form a clade with the single species traditionally placed in Setophaga (ruticilla). The generic name Setophaga has priority for this clade (AOU 2011).

May constitute a superspecies with D. dominica, D. adelaidae, and D. pityophila (AOU 1998).

BREEDING: Subspecies graciae from southern Nevada, southern Utah, southwestern Colorado, northern New Mexico, and western Texas south through eastern Sonora and western Chihuahua. Subspecies yaegeri in west-central Mexico from southern Sinaloa, Durango, and Zacatecas south to Jalisco and Colima. Subspecies remota along the Pacific coast from Michoacan through Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas into Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and northern Nicaragua. Subspecies decora in Belize (AOU 1983). NON-BREEDING: Northern breeders retreat south for winter, generally not occurring north of Nayarit (AOU 1983).

Little knowledge of direct threats.

TIMBER HARVEST: Miller (1992 cited in Hall et al. 1997) reported declines on Breeding Bird Survey routes in managed forests in Arizona and New Mexico, however, studies of response to silvicultural systems show the species is abundant in select-harvest units (Szaro and Balda 1979a, 1979b; Brawn and Balda 1988). Large-scale clearcutting and extensive overstory removal is detrimental. Current pressures to harvest timber at accelerated rates in Mexico and Central America will likely impact the species.

FIRE: Fires that kill canopy trees detrimental. Absent from burned and salvage-logged plots in a large wildfire in a northern Arizona ponderosa pine forest, presumably related to loss of the forest canopy (Overturf 1979 cited in Hall et al. 1997 and in Finch et al. 1997). In New Mexico, Johnson and Wauer (1996) studied changes over 14 years after the 1977 La Mesa wildfire and found that abundance declined on plots where scorch or crown fire killed trees. Note, however, that fire plays an important role in ponderosa pine forests and fire patterns in southwestern ponderosa pine have changed dramatically in this century. Ponderosa pine forests evolved with frequent, low intensity fires which created open stands of larger trees. Today, fire suppression has altered the forest structure, allowing the growth of more small-diameter trees per acre, creating "ladder fuels" that carry fire to the forest crown, and leading to larger, more severe or lethal fires (see Moir et al. 1997). May not be significantly affected by understory burns that do not kill the canopy foliage, but the response to different fire regimes and post-fire ecology needs study.

URBANIZATION AND RECREATION: No information is available on response to urbanization which can destroy habitat or alter ecosystem processes and forest structure (e.g. change fire patterns, increase brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) or avian predator populations) and recreation activities can have local impacts on vegetation. Marzluff (1997) hypothesizes that the abundance or productivity of canopy-nesting warblers may moderately decline from effects of urbanization through increased predation, habitat loss, and road development; and effects of camping and hiking through habitat changes and disturbance.

BROOD PARASITISM: Considered a rare cowbird host (Ehrlich et al. 1988); behavioral response to and rates of parasitism unknown.