Yellow-breasted Chats (Icteria virens) are one of the most enigmatic and curious passerines in North America. Their taxonomic status has been hotly debated for decades, yet there still is no consensus on their evolutionary relationships. Once considered a new world warbler (Parulidae) and a new world blackbird (Icteridae), they are now considered to be monotypic, and are placed in their own family (Icteriidae; don't ask me why it was named so poorly). Chats form two subspecies: auricollis (western) and virens (eastern). These subspecies may form a contact zone in the midwest United States, but little is known if plumage differences are consistent across this zone, if there are vocalization differences, or if there are genetic differences between the two subspecies. This project is one of my main chapters for my dissertation.
In addition to quantifying the contact zone, I am collaborating with the Bird Genoscape Project to generate a genoscape for Yellow-breasted Chats. Using whole-genomes from across the species' range, I aim to quantify range-wide population variation, as well as environmental factors that may shape a specific population's distribution.
Below are some select photos of the research process. All birds are handled with federal, state, and local permits. I am extensively trained to handle birds safely.
Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens auricollis) in colored pencil.
Taking a tail measurement from a Yellow-breasted Chat
Determining the age of a Yellow-breasted Chat
The general banding set-up, featuring an aluminum USGS band.
We take blood samples from each bird and store them in buffer solution for genomic analysis.
