The Great crested flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus) is a large insect-eating bird widespread in North America. It dwells mostly in the treetops, nests in a cavity in a tree, and prefers to line its nests with snake skin.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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InsectivoresAn insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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Ambush predatorAmbush predators are carnivorous animals that capture or trap prey by stealth, luring, or by (typically instinctive) strategies utilizing an elemen...
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Pursuit predatorPursuit predation is a form of predation in which predators actively give chase to their prey, either solitarily or as a group. Pursuit predators r...
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MonogamyMonogamy is a form of relationship in which both the male and the female has only one partner. This pair may cohabitate in an area or territory for...
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SolitaryMi
MigratingAnimal migration is the relatively long-distance movement of individual animals, usually on a seasonal basis. It is the most common form of migrati...
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starts withAdult Great crested flycatchers are brownish on the upperparts with yellow underparts. They have a long rusty brown tail and a bushy crest. Their throat and breast are grey. The males and the females of this species are similar in appearance.
The summer breeding ground of these birds covers all eastern, mid-eastern, and parts of the central United States, including Northern and Southern parts of Florida, parts of Texas, central Oklahoma, and eastern and central North Dakota. In Canada, they are found in southern Manitoba, extreme southern portions of the St-Lawrence forest of Ontario, Quebec, northeast Nova Scotia, and parts of Prince Edward Island. Their winter range includes most of southern Mexico and the Yucatán Peninsula and extends along the coasts of Central America. Great crested flycatchers migrate to Mexico and South America, as well as to Florida and the Caribbean. In southern peninsular Florida, they can remain year-round. Great crested flycatchers inhabit deciduous forests and edges of clearings and mixed woodlands. They also favor landscapes with open canopy, such as second-growth forests or woodlands that have been subjected to selective cutting, and try to avoid coniferous dominant habitats such as the Canadian boreal forest.
Great crested flycatchers are usually seen singly or in pairs and during the breeding season, males are quite territorial and aggressive towards intruders. These birds are active during the day and use a variety of hunting tactics, although the most common method observed is a rather passive sit-and-wait strategy. Perched in high canopies, they search in all directions often accompanied by a characteristic head bobbing. Once they have spotted a potential prey, they swoop down and will pursue if they missed on the first dive. They can also be seen abruptly braking and hovering, picking insects or small fruits off of leaves, trunks, or other surfaces, sometimes crashing into the foliage in the process. They spend most of their time in trees and rarely are found on the ground. The call of Great crested flycatchers is a whistled ‘weep’. Males sing a three-part song composed of two short whistles: a ‘wheerreep’ followed by a higher-pitched ‘whee’, and a soft low ‘churr’. This song is meant to be heard by a mate at short distances, indicating periods of low disturbance and stress typically intensifying just before dawn. It is appropriately named "dawn song" (or twilight song). In addition, Great crested flycatchers also produce various calls; a series of fast ascending ‘huit, huit, huit’ is given in moments of stress or excitement during interactions of between neighbors. A faster repetition of the single loud ‘whee-eep’ call often signal predators in proximity to nests and young. A rapid succession of harsh sounds rasps signals alarm or stress often heard during territorial disputes between neighboring birds.
Great crested flycatchers are primarily carnivores (insectivores), with insects and other invertebrates making up the majority of their diet. However, they also consume small portion of small fruits and berries. Despite the name "flycatcher", flies, along with spiders, make up only a small percentage of their diet; they prefer prey such as butterflies, moths, beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, bees and wasps.
Great crested flycatchers are monogamous and form pairs that can stay together for several years. During mating rituals males swoop down from a high perch in order to initiate mating with females, sometimes hovering near a hideaway if the female retreats, before returning to the perch and repeating the diving routine until mating is successful. Nest building begins as early as mid-April for populations of the southern distribution, and as late as June for northern populations (i.e. Manitoba). Usually, both parents inspect potential nesting sites, but the building of the nest is done almost entirely by the female, while the male closely guards its mate. Great crested flycatchers prefer to nest in cavities that are large enough in size and opening. Most chosen cavities are situated between 2-6 m off the forest ground. The nest itself is built within 2 to 4 days and is composed mostly of vegetation and plant fibers, such as grasses, moss, and leaves, but also pieces of animal fur and feathers, pieces of shed snakeskin, and artificial materials. The female will lay a single clutch of 4-8 eggs and will incubate them on average for 2 weeks. After hatching, altricial nestlings will typically spend another 2 weeks in the nest before fledging. During this time, the chicks are fed an insect-dominated diet by both parents, although females will make more frequent visits.
There are no major threats to this species at present.
According to IUCN Red List, the total population size of the Great crested flycatcher is 8,800,000 mature individuals. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today are stable.
Great crested flycatchers are important for their native ecosystem because they control the populations of many insect species they feed on.
