Genus XenoligeaBond, 1967 Phylum Chordata Rank Species | Family Incertae sedis Scientific name Xenoligea montana Higher classification Xenoligea Order Passerine | |
Similar Green‑tailed warbler, Papyrus gonolek, Whistling warbler, Teretistris, Barbuda warbler | ||
The white-winged warbler (Xenoligea montana), also called Hispaniolan Highland-tanager, is a species of bird formerly classified in the Parulidae family. It is the only member of the genus Xenoligea, and is found solely in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, which share the island of Hispaniola.
The bird is 13–14 cm (5 in) with a long tail and robust beak. The upper back and rump are olive green. The head is dark grey and the tail and wings are blackish. The eyes have a partial white eye-ring and a white stripe going down towards the beak. The underparts are white, turning to grey on the flanks.
Recently, it has been shown be too genetically distant from the Parulidae proper to be included there with good justification. Instead, DNA evidence supports including it in a family with its sister genus Microligea, and the Phaenicophilus palm-tanagers—and in fact, it looks like rather like a miniature version of Phaenicophilus.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forest and subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland, usually at altitudes above 1,300 m (4265 ft). It is threatened by habitat loss. It feeds both on fruits and insects, foraging in the underbrush and all the way up to the forest canopy. It frequently joins mixed foraging flocks of other warblers.