Acadian Flycatcher
From WikiBird
Contents |
Size
Length: ??cm (??in), Wingspan: ??cm (??in)
Field Marks
Adult: Olive upperparts, darker on the wings and tail. Breast has olive wash, whitish throat, belly and undertail coverts. Sometimes has yellowish wash to underparts. whitish underparts; White eye ring, white wing bars and a wide bill. The breast is washed with olive. The upper part of the bill is dark; the lower part is yellowish. Juvenile: Buffy wing bars.
Similar species
The empidonax flycatchers are very difficult to tell apart. The safest way to differentiate them is by habitat, range, and voice in the breeding season. Differences in plumage due to molt, wear and age make the plumage quite variable. A combination of features is helpful for identifying this species: size-it is larger than [[Yellow-bellied Flycatcher|Yellow-bellied] and Least, color-it has greener upperparts and yellower underparts than all but the Yellow-bellied. The Yellow-bellied flycatcher is usually more yellow underneath-especially on the throat, is smaller and more active, and has a smaller bill. Alder and Willow are browner above and whiter below with less obvious eye rings. Least is smaller, grayer above and whiter below and has a smaller bill. Empidonax flycatchers from the western United States have darker lower mandibles, and whiter underparts (Gray and Dusky), darker breasts (Hammond's), or oval eye rings (Pacific-slope and Cordilleran) as well as different ranges. Pewees are larger, browner above, whiter below and have indistinct eye rings.
Sounds
This bird's song is peet-sa. The call is a soft peet. They also have a call similar to that of the Northern Flicker.
Feeding & Behavior
They wait on a perch in the middle of a tree and fly out to catch insects in flight, also sometimes picking insects from foliage while hovering. They may eat some berries and seeds.
Habitat & Nesting
Often found in woodlands near water-along rivers, in swamps, et al. Their breeding habitat is deciduous forests, often near water. They make a loose cup nest in a horizontal fork in a tree or shrub.
Range
Breeds across the eastern United States and southwestern Ontario. Migrate to Central America and northern South America.
Resources
