WatchList Species Account for Prairie Warbler (Dendroica discolor)

Qualifies for the list as a Declining Yellow List Species

Photo: USFWS

A bird of early successional, shrubby habitats, the Prairie Warbler benefited from deforestation and became widespread during the mid-twentieth century. However it has shown a steep decline in recent years, up to 44% indicated by Breeding Bird Surveys in the Midwest. A habitat much occupied by the bird in the eastern U.S. is the scrub oak pine-barren community; state and local governments and private conservation groups have done much in recent years to preserve examples of this habitat, with concommitant benefits to the Prairie Warbler. This is a fire-adapted community type and prescribed burns are used to maintain it. Cowbird parasitism and habitat loss on its wintering range in south Florida and the West Indies may also contribute to diminishing its numbers.