[Birdtalk] Flycatcher ID

[Kristin Purdy]

Ben,

You asked a couple simple questions that have complicated answers. First, 
your two flycatchers.

I think the bird in images 1-7 is a Gray Flycatcher. I'm not at all sure 
I've got this one right. Here's my reasoning:

Very difficult to see the proportions of this bird due to steep downward 
angle of the images of the bird on the tomato cage.
Can't see length of tail (which should be long) or length of wingtips (which 
should be short)
Crown seems smoothly rounded in several shots
Long relatively narrow bill; can't see what should be a pale lower mandible 
due to the downward angle
Pale gray throat blends smoothly into face color
Very pale plumage and not very colorful. Narrow whitish wingbars, pale olive 
wash on back that doesn't continue to the head.
If this bird is a Gray, you might have noticed a distinctive downward tail 
dipping behavior.

I think the bird depicted in images 8-11 is a Hammond's Flycatcher due to:

Seemingly small size, big head
Fresh-looking yellow plumage given that it's September, prior to/during 
migration
Wide creamy wingbars
Long wingtips, short tail
Small dark bill; narrow at the base with little or no evidence of yellow on 
the lower mandible
Complete white eyering, thinner at the top front and thicker behind the eye
Relatively rounded crown with slight peak at the rear
Color on back continuous to back of head

The most helpful shot in suggesting this ID is the sunflower shot because 
it's nearly at eye-level and shows the bird's structure and proportions 
well.

Regarding tips on telling the species apart, here's my three-part answer: 
work, work, work. The advice that has served me well is Kenn Kaufman's, 
author of 'A Field Guide to Advanced Birding: Birding Challenges and How to 
Approach Them'. He counsels that the WORST approach to learning the 
Empidonax flycatchers is to try to identify non-singing birds on 
migration--isn't that the way we always try to do it?!?

Kenn's advice is to learn the bird's songs, which are distinctive, and the 
bird's habitats, which are somewhat distinctive, and then seek out males 
singing on territory in the spring and early summer. Once you've identified 
the birds by their songs, study their plumage, structure, behavior, and TAKE 
NOTES so you remember. Even if you can only identify one species, your 
becoming thoroughly familiar with that one species will pay dividends when 
the quiet birds pass through on migration.

Last year, I took his advice and sought out two species--a singing Dusky 
Flycatcher along New Snowbasin Road in Weber County and a singing Willow 
Flycatcher at the inlet end of East Canyon Reservoir in Morgan County. You'd 
be amazed the detail you can see when you're systematically studying a bird 
that stays put.

Kenn's book will give you the specific tips you're looking for. I'm not 
going to repeat them because I'd have to type his whole chapter on Empids 
into this post. Just buy the book. You can get it at Amazon.com through the 
bookstore on the Utahbirds website and a small portion of the proceeds will 
go to maintaining the site. Pull up the link to the bookstore, then to 
Families & In-depth, then In-depth.

Kaufman's best advice, which you'll find in the introduction: "If any group 
of birds leaves you confused, irritated, or uninterested, simply ignore that 
group. Maybe you'll want to look at them more closely next year, or maybe 
not; but it will always be acceptable to call them 'Empidonax sp.'..."

After you've done some studying, prepare for disappointment. This family of 
birds is really hard and takes constant work. I'm curious to know if anyone 
agrees with the ID's I suggested on your backyard birds because I'm always 
ready to consume a plateful of humble pie on identifying Empids from photos. 
Photos don't sing on territory.

Kris
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Ben Palmer
  To: birdtalk at utahbirds.org
  Sent: Saturday, September 22, 2007 2:54 PM
  Subject: [Birdtalk] Flycatcher ID


  Hi Everyone,

  I took some pictures of a pair of flycatchers in my yard last week and was 
wondering if anyone might be able to help with the ID's and provide some 
tips on telling the similar species apart.  The photos were taken in West 
Layton in a vegetable garden.

  http://picasaweb.google.com/bhhpalmer/Flycatchers

  Thanks,
  Ben



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