Kingdom Animalia Order Passeriformes Genus Myioborus Higher classification Whitestart | Phylum Chordata Family Parulidae Scientific name Myioborus miniatus Rank Species | |
 | ||
Similar Whitestart, Bird, New World warbler, Rufous‑capped warbler, Three‑striped warbler | ||
The slate-throated whitestart (Myioborus miniatus), or, less accurately, the slate-throated redstart, is a species of bird in the Parulidae family.
The slate-throated whitestart is a long-tailed warbler measuring 12 cm (4.7 in) long. It has a deep rufous head, dark back, and contrasting bright yellow breast, belly and white vent and tail tips. The bill is black, and the legs are blackish-gray.
It is found disjunctly in humid highland forests, from upper understory to mid canopy, in Mexico, Central America, the Andes from western Venezuela to northwestern Argentina, the Venezuelan Coastal Range, Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the tepuis. Pairs remain together throughout year, often accompanying mixed flocks. It hops and flits about while flashing its tail to frighten insects which are then caught in aerial pursuits. It will occasionally take protein corpuscles from Cecropia plants and will occasionally glean insects from tree bark.
The slate-throated whitestart's call note is a sharp "pik" note. The song varies with region, although throughout most of range it is a varied series of whistled notes, some slurred up, some slurred down.
From April to May, pairs nest in a bulky, roofed structure with a side entrance, usually nestled in niche in bank or steep slope. The female lays 3, or sometimes 2, speckled white eggs.
While most of its plumage changes little throughout its large range, the underparts grade from yellow in most of its range, to red in the northernmost part.