Hammond's Flycatcher

Empidonax hammondiiOrder: PASSERIFORMES Family: Flycatchers (Tyrannidae)

Codes: Common Name: HAFL Scientific Name: EMPHAM ITIS Taxonomic No.: 554254

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Overview

Hammond's Flycatcher: Small flycatcher, gray upperparts, gray-brown underparts, white eye-ring. Throat is pale gray, belly is pale yellow. Wings are dark with two pale bars. Feeds on insects. Black legs and feet. Weak fluttering direct flight with shallow wing beats. Sallies to take insects in air.

Range and Habitat

Hammond's Flycatcher: Breeds from eastern Alaska south to northern California and northern New Mexico. Spends winters in the tropics and rarely in Arizona. Preferred habitats include mature conifer forests at high altitudes.

Topo Map: Perching-like Body

Listen to Call

Similar Sounding

Voice Text

"seweep-tsurp-seep", "peep", "wit"

Interesting Facts

The Hammond's Flycatcher looks very similar to Gray and Dusky flycatchers; all three species overlap in range, but differ in voice and habitat.

Early in the breeding season males fight so vigorously defending their territories that they often become locked together in midair.

The name of this bird commemorates William Alexander Hammond.

A group of flycatchers has many collective nouns, including an "outfield", "swatting", "zapper", and "zipper" of flycatchers.

Bird Term Glossary

Author

Gary Owen Dick

Artist

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Hammond's Flycatcher

● Song: "seweep-tsurp-seep", "peep", "wit"

● Foraging & Feeding: Hammond's Flycatcher: Eats mostly insects; forages at mid-level in conifers and aspens.

● Breeding & nesting: Hammond's Flycatcher: Three or four creamy white eggs, occasionally with brown spots, are laid in a well-built cup nest saddled on a branch 15 to 60 feet above the ground, usually in a conifer. Incubation ranges from 12 to 16 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Hammond's Flycatcher: Dusky Flycatcher has a longer bill, pale gray throat, longer tail, and different voice. Least Flycatcher is slightly smaller, grayer above, whiter below, and has a different voice.

Flight Pattern

Weak fluttering flight with shallow wing beats.

● Range & Habitat: Hammond's Flycatcher: Breeds from eastern Alaska south to northern California and northern New Mexico. Spends winters in the tropics and rarely in Arizona. Preferred habitats include mature conifer forests at high altitudes.

^BreedingMonogamous

^PopulationWidespread

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight0.4 Ounces

Perching-like Body

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

Belly

The ventral part of the bird, or the area between the flanks on each side and the crissum and breast. Flight muscles are located between the belly and the breast.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America