Species
Willow flycatcher
Empidonax traillii
A plain flycatcher of wet thickets that nests locally in north Georgia and sings a sneezy 'FITZ-bew'.
Photo Paul Danese (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- About 13 to 17 cm long
- Weight
- About 11 to 16 g
- Habitat
- Shrubby wetlands, willow thickets and wet fields
- Diet
- Insects
- In Georgia
- A local summer resident in the north; an uncommon migrant
- Voice
- A sneezy "FITZ-bew"
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Brownish olive; faint or no eye-ring; two wing bars
- Told apart from
- Alder flycatcher, which sings "fee-BEE-o"
- Where to look
- Shrubby wetlands in north Georgia valleys
Behaviour
Willow flycatchers sing from exposed perches in shrubby wetlands and catch insects in flight.
Why they matter
Willow flycatchers depend on shrubby wetlands that are easily cleared. A western subspecies is endangered, and their fortunes follow those of streamside thickets.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Nest — A cup in the fork of a shrub
Eggs — Usually three or four
Incubation — About 12 to 15 days
Chicks — Fed by both parents
Lifespan — Several years
Living around people
- Clearing shrubby wetlands removes their nesting habitat.
Misconceptions
- All small flycatchers are the same. Several look almost identical and are told apart by song.
Related species
Seasonal activity
When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breeding | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Active nests | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Notes | In Central America | In Central America | In Central America | In Central America | Arriving | Nesting | Nesting | Young fledging; migrants | Leaving | In Central America | In Central America | In Central America |
Where it lives
Recorded in 66 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.
United States
- Alaskabreeding
- Arizonabreeding
- Arkansasbreeding
- Californiabreeding
- Coloradobreeding
- Connecticutbreeding
- Delawarebreeding
- District of Columbiabreeding
- Georgiabreeding
- Idahobreeding
- Illinoisbreeding
- Indianabreeding
- Iowabreeding
- Kansasbreeding
- Kentuckybreeding
- Mainebreeding
- Marylandbreeding
- Massachusettsbreeding
- Michiganbreeding
- Minnesotabreeding
- Missouribreeding
- Montanabreeding
- Nebraskabreeding
- Nevadabreeding
- New Hampshirebreeding
- New Jerseybreeding
- New Mexicobreeding
- New Yorkbreeding
- North Carolinabreeding
- North Dakotabreeding
- Ohiobreeding
- Oklahomabreeding
- Oregonbreeding
- Pennsylvaniabreeding
- Rhode Islandbreeding
- South Dakotabreeding
- Tennesseebreeding
- Texaspassing through
- Utahbreeding
- Vermontbreeding
- Virginiabreeding
- Washingtonbreeding
- West Virginiabreeding
- Wisconsinbreeding
- Wyomingbreeding
Canada
If you found one
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