Among the similar-looking Empidonax Flycatchers, the two most difficult to tell the Cordilleran Flycatcher and the Pacific-slope Flycatcher apart. You can usually recognize a male by their calls, but you can hardly ever identify females can at all except by their ranges in summer. They were a single species until the late 1980s, where both were put under the name of Western Flycatchers.
About Cordilleran Flycatchers
These birds live throughout the Rocky Mountains, where they extend from the south of the range through most of Mexico, while their cousin is mainly in coastal areas. In comparison to Pacific-slope Flycatchers, they breed in cooler, more arid, regions that have a denser distribution forest of forests of pine, fir, and spruce. Although there are still significant amounts of both of their ranges that overlap, these are the most basic differences between the habitats of the two.
These birds are understudied, with the most information about them deriving themselves from prior studies of Pacific-slope Flycatchers. While the biology of both species is likely extremely similar, there is still not much information available on what makes them distinct. Today, we will attempt to break down all aspects of their lives and try to convey the unique nature and the shared traits of this relatively unknown bird. We will be discussing:
● Cordilleran Flycatcher Photos, Color Pattern, Song
● Cordilleran Flycatcher Size, Eating Behavior, Habitat
● Cordilleran Flycatcher Range and Migration, Nesting
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Cordilleran Flycatcher Color Pattern
These birds are small and unassuming, with olive-green upperparts and olive to yellow underparts. They have a prominent, teardrop-shaped yellowish ring that encircles their eyes, with the same shades of yellow highlighting their wings through barred patterns. Their back is a greenish-brown, while their bills are bicolored. The upper mandible is a dark blackish shade while the lower mandible is a dusky, rose-pink to orange. Their feet are black, and their tails are long and dark, barred with yellowish hues.
Juveniles look similar to adults but have their upper parts and underparts washed with brownish shades. The bars on their wings are buff or cinnamon, while their underparts are a paler yellow when compared to adults. The body feathers can be more filamentous in their younger days, but it is a minute difference that is not always noticed.
Description and Identification
As with many Empidonax Flycatchers, voice is the best way to find and identify Cordilleran Flycatchers. Listen for the male’s sharp song and descending call note, given frequently during the first few weeks of nesting. During the breeding season, and also during migration in April and September, a streamside hike through a wooded canyon has a good chance of providing a glimpse of Cordilleran Flycatchers. Concentrate especially on spots where bug-filled gaps in the forest canopy make for good flycatching, as these birds are likely to swoop down and forage for their insect prey.
Cordilleran Flycatcher Song
Their song is possibly one of the most distinguishing aspects of them. It is a sharp “ps-SEET ptsick seet”! that is very similar to that of Pacific-slope Flycatchers. However, unlike the latter, the songs of Cordilleran Flycatchers seem to descend in pitch rather than rise. Their songs are also lower in frequency and are of a slightly longer duration. The call notes of males are also extremely distinct, with males uttering a sharp 2-syllabled call that is “pit-PEET”. They also utter a rising whistle that sounds like “wee-eee” or “squeet”! Females have a call that conveys their location to their partners, a brief and crisp “tsip” or “tsit” that is very similar to the seet call which is an alarm call for threatening situations. While there is not much data on more of their vocalizations, they are similar to those of Pacific-slope Flycatchers.
Cordilleran Flycatcher Size
These birds are slim and small songbirds that are around 5.5–6.7 inches long and about 0.3–0.4 ounces heavy. They have an upright posture and a large head, which sometimes gives them a rounded appearance. Their bill is straight and fairly wide, while their tail is moderately long. The wingspan of these curious birds is around 7.9–9.1 inches, making them slightly larger than Chestnut-backed Chickadees and smaller than Black Phoebes.
Cordilleran Flycatcher Behavior
These birds generally move by flight, as there have been very few observations about their behavior on land. These flights generally consist of short aerial sallies or other highly acrobatic movements that other Flycatchers observe to engage in while chasing their prey. They fly out from perches from mid-heights in trees and understory, usually capturing insects in flight just below the canopy. On rarer occasions, they pick insects out from vegetation. Insects are also caught in the air or gleaned from the foliage of trees and shrubs.
There is no information on their courtship rituals or of their pair bonds; however, parallels can be made based on the observations of other Flycatchers. They most likely sing to mark their territories and attract a mate, presumably also engaging in chasing bouts to drive away any other male that enters their territory. Other species of smaller Flycatchers might also be driven away from the sites of territorial males. Territories have breaks in the canopy
that allow for good foraging and good nest rites but can sometimes also include the sides of ravines or banks. Males sing frequently until they find a mate, after which the frequency of their songs reduces but does not completely cease either. These birds appear to be monogamous, as they take turns incubating the eggs and collectively feed the nestlings. However, these are estimates as there have been little to no observations on the dynamics of their bonds.
Cordilleran Flycatcher Diet
As with most other aspects, the differences between the diet of these birds and the Pacific-slope Flycatcher are poorly understood, but it is likely that much of their diet is the same. Cordilleran Flycatchers mostly feed on insects that they capture in flight or else pick from vegetation. They hunt largely from the interior of trees or large shrubs, usually near the middle of the tree, sallying out to catch flying insects beneath the canopy level. Among
their known prey items are beetles, bugs, wasps, bees, flies, snakeflies, moths, caterpillars, leafhoppers, and spiders. They also consume berries such as elderberry and blackberry.
Cordilleran Flycatcher Habitat
You can find these birds in drier habitats in medium to high elevations. They inhabit moist woods, forests, and shady forests. They mainly breed in forested regions, mostly in the mountains and along with deciduous growths. Cordilleran Flycatcher also live along streams that go through mixed or coniferous forests. They often forage in conifers like pines or Douglas-firs, but they are not common in pure coniferous forests. They also tend to prefer more open forests than densely wooded canopies as compared to Pacific-slope Flycatchers.
Range and Migration
Cordilleran Flycatchers mostly breed throughout the stretches of the Rocky Mountain, ranging from the states of Washington and Montana, occupying most regions along with the lower areas of the Colorado River. They also breed in Oregon, and regions further south around Arizona. They are short-distance migrants, with most populations simply moving towards warmer regions in lower elevations and further down south. The most common wintering destination for these birds is along the interior sections of northern and central Mexico. Birds that breed around northern and central Mexico are permanent residents of their habitats and do not migrate.
Cordilleran Flycatcher Lifecycle
These birds have a single brood in a year. Each brood has a clutch size of 3–5 whitish eggs with brown blotches on either end. While incubation is mostly carried out by the females, males may take up the role on few occasions. The incubation period lasts for an average of 14–15 days. After the eggs hatch, the chicks emerge completely naked in a
helpless state. They are able to take their first flight following an additional 14–18 days after they hatch. Parents leave shortly after the chicks become independent.
Nesting
Nest sites in the forks of small trees, on a stump, among upturned roots of fallen trees, under bridges, or on rafters in a shed. Sites that occur naturally are generally on the ground, but sites in urban areas on artificial structures can be more than 10 feet high. The female builds the nest, weaves an outer cup of moss, grass, rootlets, strips of bark, lichens, and leaves, before lining the interiors with finer material like plant fibers, hair, and feathers. Sometimes, they use manmade materials like paper, string, and yarn to build nests. The resulting proportions might be about 4.5 inches across, with the interior cup mostly around 2 inches across and 1.1 inches deep.
Anatomy of a Cordilleran Flycatcher
These birds are slim and small songbirds that are around 5.5–6.7 inches long and about 0.3–0.4 ounces heavy. They have an upright posture and a large head, which sometimes gives them a rounded appearance. Their bill is straight and fairly wide, while their tail is moderately long. The wingspan of these curious birds is around 7.9–9.1 inches, making them slightly larger than Chestnut-backed Chickadees and smaller than Black Phoebes.
Final Thoughts
The populations of these birds are usually combined with Pacific-slope Flycatchers under the label of Western Flycatchers. Surveys from British Columbia have shown a relative increase in their combined numbers from the late 1960s till the turn of the 21 st century. Apparently, there has been a 1.6% increase in their yearly populations during that time period. As a result, these birds have been categorized as a species of low conservation concern, although their recent numbers and population trends have very little data on them.
Cordilleran Flycatchers took the ornithological world by surprise when they were first split from their closely related cousins. Together with Pacific-slope Flycatchers, they are still the most difficult birds to identify in the Empidonax family of Flycatchers. Although they are both relatively spaced apart in range, their overlapping geographical territories can make the case of identification even more difficult. Even though their calls, the minute differences were first only picked up by sonogram machines rather than by ear. Mysteries like these are half the reason why learning about birds is so fun! Go over through some videos of both with names hidden and try to identify the differences between them as a fun exercise for yourself!
Ornithology
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Cordilleran Flycatcher Stickers
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Bird Feeders For Cordilleran Flycatchers
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Bird HousesFor Cordilleran Flycatchers
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