Eastern Wood-Pewee

Listen in deciduous and mixed forest across eastern North America for its plaintive, slurred 'pee-a-wee' song, given persistently from an exposed mid-canopy perch, which is often the best way to detect this otherwise unobtrusive flycatcher. It sits upright and still between sallies, darting out to catch flying insects and returning to the same or a nearby perch, with drab olive-gray plumage that blends into leafy canopy. Late spring through mid-summer during the breeding season is the best time to hear its song, which continues even through the warmest, quietest parts of the day when other birds have gone silent.