Alder Flycatcher
Empidonax alnorum
Habitat
Mid-canopy
Diet
Invertebrate
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
13 g
About This Species
A small, nondescript flycatcher of shrubby wetlands, alder thickets and boggy woodland edges across northern North America, best identified by its distinctive burry, two-note song rather than by plumage, since it closely resembles several related species. It sits upright on low, exposed perches over open ground, sallying out to catch flying insects before returning to the same spot. Listen for its song in shrubby wet habitat during the breeding season, typically the best and most reliable way to confirm its identity.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Observe from a distance with binoculars and avoid pushing into dense thicket habitat to get closer, since this can flush a bird from its perch and disrupt feeding.
- Migratory birds are protected under law in the United States and Canada, including restrictions on capture and nest disturbance, though specifics differ between the two countries.
- Given how easily it is confused with similar species, relying on voice for identification from a distance is both more reliable and less disruptive than trying to approach for a close look.
LCAvesPasseriformesTyrannidae
Seasonal Activity
564,698 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Tyrannidae
Traits
- Diet
- Invertebrate
- Foraging
- Mid-canopy
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 13 g
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.