Composition of mixed-species flocks of migrant and resident birds in Cuba

Neotropical habitats. In the Caribbean islands flocks have been noted on Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Haiti, in the Dominican Republic, the Virgin Islands and on Cuba. Unlike other islands, however, such flocks have not been described in detail for Cuba. One previous report treated mixed-species flocks of migratory wood warblers in Cuba. Cuba is an important wintering area for Nearctic–Neotropical migrant birds (hereafter ‘migrants’). With 50% of the total land area in the Caribbean, the island offers the largest wintering area for migrants. Cuban avifauna contains 24 endemic species, two of which, Yellowheaded Warbler Teretistris fernandinae and Oriente Warbler T. fornsi, appear to be species around which mixed-species flocks often form. The behavioural ecology of these species has been little studied, and their taxonomic relations to wood warblers (Parulidae) are also uncertain. Eaton did not recognise Teretistris spp. as flock associates. Our objectives here are to: document the composition of mixed-species flocks in Cuba; describe the contribution of migratory and resident birds to flock composition; and to assess associations among species within flocks.