Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Myiodynastes luteiventris
At a Glance
One of the last spring migrants to arrive in southern Arizona, the Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher brings an unmistakable touch of the tropics. Colorful, strongly patterned, and noisy, it seems far more exotic than most of the drab North American flycatchers. Its shrill calls, sounding like rusty hinges or squeaky rubber toys, are typical sounds of summer among the sycamores in lower canyons near the Mexican border.
All bird guide text and rangemaps adapted from Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman© 1996, used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Category
Perching Birds, Tyrant Flycatchers
IUCN Status
Least Concern
Habitat
Arroyos and Canyons, Desert and Arid Habitats, Forests and Woodlands
Region
California, Southwest
Behavior
Direct Flight, Flitter, Hovering
Population
2.000.000
Range & Identification
Migration & Range Maps
A long-distance migrant, going to South America for the winter. Arrives in Arizona in late May or early June, and departs for the south in September.
Description
7 1/2 -8 1/2" (19-22 cm). Bright rusty tail, long heavy bill, dark face patch, heavily streaked above and below. Unlike any other flycatcher in our area (but some in tropics are very similar).
Size
About the size of a Robin, About the size of a Sparrow
Color
Black, Brown, Red, White, Yellow
Wing Shape
Pointed
Tail Shape
Rounded, Square-tipped
Songs and Calls
Loud, shrill peet-chee calls, sounding like squeaking wagon wheels, uttered by single bird or pair in duet. Male has soft tre-le-re-re song.
Call Pattern
Flat, Rising, Undulating
Call Type
Chirp/Chip, Hi, Scream, Whistle
Habitat
Sycamore-walnut canyons. In our area, found mainly in lower parts of canyons in the mountains, where tall sycamores and other trees grow along streams through pine-oak forest. Also locally in sycamores and cottonwoods along streams at lower elevations. In the tropics, found in open woods, groves, and forest edges.
Sign up for Audubon's newsletter to learn more about birds like the Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Behavior
Eggs
3-4. White to pale buff, heavily spotted with reddish brown. Incubation is by female only, 15-16 days.
Young
Both parents bring food to nestlings. Age of young at first flight about 16-18 days.
Feeding Behavior
Forages by watching from a perch, then flying out to capture insects. Usually forages fairly high, perching on a twig within the shady upper levels of a tree. Flies out and hovers while taking an insect from foliage or branches, or may catch insects in mid-air.
Diet
Mostly insects. Diet is not known in detail, but feeds mainly on insects, probably including large caterpillars, beetles, katydids, and others. Also eats some small fruits and berries.
Nesting
In courtship, male and female perch close together, shaking their heads back and forth and calling in duet. Very aggressive during the nesting season, pairs of Sulphur-bellies may compete for choice cavities with other hole-nesting birds, even Elegant Trogons. Nests mainly in mid-summer in Arizona, most eggs probably hatching in July. Nest site in Arizona is usually in large natural cavity of sycamore, 20-50' above the ground. Female builds nest. If cavity is deep, she fills it most of the way with twigs and bark strips, then builds nest on top of this foundation, mostly of fine leaf stems and pine needles.
Climate Vulnerability
Conservation Status
In its limited range in the United States, numbers seem stable or possibly increasing.
Climate Threats Facing the Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.