Southern Yellowthroat

The southern yellowthroat (Geothlypis velata) is a New World warbler. It has a number of separate resident breeding populations in South America from southeastern Peru, eastern Bolivia, and south Amazonian Brazil to Argentina and Uruguay. It was previously considered a subspecies of the masked yellowthroat. The breeding habitat is marshes and other wet areas with dense low vegetation. The southern yellowthroat is usually seen in pairs, and does not associate with other species. It is often skulking, but may pop up occasionally, especially to sing. It feeds on insects, including caterpillars, dragonflies, damselflies, grasshoppers and beetles, and spiders, which are usually captured in dense vegetation. The call is a fast chattering, quite unlike that of other yellowthroat species, and a more typical sharp chip.