Adult specimen - entirely black and white, it is distinguished by the thin, white eyebrow stripe, white patches on ear coverts and neck, incomplete eyering and black crown. It is very similar to the Black and White Warbler, a non-breeding resident of the West Indies. The Elfin Woods Warbler is endemic to Puerto Rico, where it is uncommon and local in distribution. It breeds from March to June and the nest have been described as a compact cup, usually close to trunk and well hidden among epiphytes of a small tree. Song is a series of short, rapidly uttered, rather unmusical notes on one pitch, swelling in volume and terminating with a short series of distinct double syllables sounding slightly lower in pitch.
Contact note is similar to the song, but lacks the terminal syllables.
Click here to hear the sound of this bird. In the east, it is known from Carite and Luquillo Mountains. In the west it is restricted to the upper elevation of the Maricao State Forest. A guide to the Birds of the West Indies. P. 406 Princeton University Press.