Orange-crested Flycatcher
Myiophobus phoenicomitra
Scarce, unremarkable flycatcher of Andean cloud forest understory. Note the yellow underparts, vague brownish wingbars, stubby bill, and faint eye-ring. Male’s orange crest is usually concealed and rarely seen in the field. The species lacks strong field marks, and voice is often the easiest way to identify it. Typical song is a high-pitched “sit-sweet!-sit,” sometimes followed by a few softer notes.
Identification
The Orange-crested flycatcher is a small bird, weighing 10-11g. It is mostly olive in colour with a dark brown tail and wings and faint ochre wing-bars. It has a stubby light-coloured bill and dark eye with a faint eye-ring. The males eponymous orange crest is usually hidden, making it less useful as a distinguishable feature in the field. The similar-looking Flavescent flycatcher can be told apart by its broken eye-ring and black bill. Its call is phoneticized by some as "sit-sit-sit-still" or "sit-sweet-sit".
Taxonomy
The Orange-crested flycatcher was first described by Ornithologists, Władysław Taczanowski and Hans von Berlepsch in 1885 as Myiobius phoenicomitra with the type locality being Tungurahua Province in Ecuador. It was later moved from the genus Myiobius to Myiophobus. There are currently two recognized subspecies:
- Scientific name
- Myiophobus phoenicomitra
- Authority
- (Taczanowski & Berlepsch, 1885)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Tyrannidae
- Genus
- Myiophobus
Range and habitat
There are three main disjunct populations, one on the western slopes of the Andes in Colombia and Ecuador (M. p. litae), one on the eastern slopes of the Andes from southern Colombia to northern Peru (M. p. phoenicomitra), and another separate population around Chachapoyas Province, Peru.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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