Willow Flycatcher
Empidonax traillii
Also known as: Traill's Flycatcher
About This Species
Look for it perched on an exposed twig at the edge of willow thickets and other shrubby wetland margins, sallying out to snatch flying insects and returning to the same perch. The buzzy, sneezed 'fitz-bew' song is often the easiest way to find one, since the plumage is famously plain and hard to tell from other Empidonax flycatchers by sight alone. Arrives on breeding grounds late spring and is most vocal at dawn through early summer.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Stay back far enough that the bird keeps foraging and doesn't flush repeatedly, especially near a suspected nest in dense scrub.
- Some regional populations of this species carry stricter legal protection than the species as a whole, so treat any breeding-season encounter with extra care rather than assuming a blanket rule applies everywhere.
- Avoid playback or pishing near a territory during nesting season, as repeated disturbance can cause abandonment.
LCAvesPasseriformesTyrannidae
Seasonal Activity
960,898 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Tyrannidae
Photo
(c) BJ Stacey, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
CC-BY-NC-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.