The Roraiman warbler (Myiothlypis roraimae) is a passerine bird in the new world warbler family Parulidae. It is found in Brazil, Guyana, and Venezuela. Taxonomic systems are divided on whether it is a species or subspecies.
Taxonomy and systematics
The Roraiman warbler was formally described in 1885 with the binomial Basileuterus roraimae. By 2007 taxonomic systems had begun to resurrect genus Myiothlypis, which had been erected in 1850, for the two-banded warbler and many other species.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, D. F. Lane, L, N. Naka, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 27 February 2026. A classification of the bird species of South America. South American Classification Committee associated with the International Ornithologists' Union. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved February 28, 2026BirdLife International (2007) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. [Old] Version 0. Available at: https://datazone.birdlife.org/about-our-science/taxonomy
At that time the Roraiman warbler was treated as one of three subspecies of the two-banded warbler (M. bivittata). In 2014 the IOC split the Roraiman warbler as a species and retained the English name "two-banded warbler" for the other two subspecies.Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2014. IOC World Bird List (v 4.4). http://www.worldbirdnames.org/ BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) did the same in 2016.BirdLife International (2016) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. [Old] Version 9. Available at: http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/BirdLife_Checklist_Version_90.zip. Several studies support this split.Boesman, P. (2016). "Notes on the vocalizations of Two-banded Warbler (Basileuterus bivittatus)". HBW Alive Ornithological Note 376. In: Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.Todd, W. E. C. (1929). "A revision of the wood warbler genus Basileuterus and its allies". Proceedings of the United States National Museum 74: 1–95.Lovette, I.J., Pérez-Emán, J.L., Sullivan, J.P., Banks, R.C., Fiorentino, I., Córdoba-Córdoba, S., Echeverry-Galvis, M., Barker, F.K., Burns, K.J., Klicka, J., Lanyon, S.M. and Bermingham, E. (2010). "A comprehensive multilocus phylogeny for the wood-warblers and a revised classification of the Parulidae (Aves)". Mol. Phylogenet. & Evol.. 57(2): 753–770.
However, as of early 2026 AviList, the Clements taxonomy, and the South American Classification Committee retain the three-subspecies model of the two-banded warbler.Clements, J. F., P. C. Rasmussen, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, A. Spencer, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, M. Smith, and C. L. Wood. 2025. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2025. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ retrieved November 3, 2025 AviList states that "Taxon roraimae is retained within Myiothlypis bivittata. These taxa are highly divergent based on analysis of mitochondrial DNA and have very different songs but a split is deferred pending publication of current research." Clements recognizes these differences within the species, somewhat mirroring the IOC and HBW names by calling roraimae the "two-banded warbler (Roraiman)" and grouping bivittata plus argentinae as the "two-banded warbler (two-banded)".
Further information about the Roraiman warbler including description, range, habitat, behavior, and IUCN status are included in the two-banded warbler article.
References