Swamp Flycatcher

Muscicapa aquatica

Chunky brown flycatcher with a white throat and brown chest band. Birds in the eastern part of the range show a lot of contrast on the underparts, while western birds are duller. Found in habitats adjacent to water, including papyrus swamp, marsh, riverbanks, and lakeshores. Not very vocal, but the quiet song is a mix of rasps, trills, and high-pitched whistles. Duller western birds can be confused with Cassin’s Flycatcher, which is also often found near water, but are brown rather than gray overall.

Taxonomy

Scientific name
Muscicapa aquatica
Authority
Heuglin, 1864
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Muscicapidae
Genus
Muscicapa

Range and habitat

Migration
Resident species

Conservation

Population trend
stable

Photos

Distribution

Bird Calls

Other Birds

Russet Sparrow

Russet Sparrow

Passer cinnamomeus

Well-attired small songbird typically associated with mid- to high-elevation farms, fields, and open forests throughout its range. Found in less intensively developed areas than House and Eurasian Tree Sparrows, sticking to villages and pastures and staying away from large city centers. Male has bright chestnut cap and back, whitish cheek, narrow black throat, and pale gray belly. Female brownish with broad streaks above, pale below, with white wingbars and broad tan supercilium.

Needle-billed Hermit

Needle-billed Hermit

Phaethornis philippii

Large, tawny-orange hermit. Owes it name to its nearly straight bill, which is usually very slightly downcurved. Light orange below, greenish brown above, with a dark brown mask and long white tail tips. Usually prefers more upland areas than other hermits, away from water and especially around bamboo and in terra firme forest.

Red-billed Tyrannulet

Red-billed Tyrannulet

Zimmerius cinereicapilla

Small and rather scarce flycatcher found in disturbed forest on the east slope of the Andes. Yellowish-olive with a gray head and pale throat. Combination of stubby, reddish bill, pale iris, and yellow edges to wing feathers that do not form distinct wingbars help separate it from other small flycatchers. Overlaps with the very similar Mishana Tyrannulet in northern Peru, but Red-billed has a gray (not olive) crown and a different voice. Calls include soft whistles and squeaks, given alone or in a quick series. Typically seen perched high in a tree in a clearing or at forest edge.

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