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Birds of Zihuatanejo

CLASS AVES

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Chordates (Phylum Chordata)

-Vertebrates (Subphylum Vertebrata)

-Birds (Class Aves)

-Perching Birds (Order Passeriformes)

-Tityras and Allies (Family Tityridae)

-Myiarchus Flycatchers (Genus Myiarchus)

-Nutting's Flycatcher (Myiarchus nuttingi)


The Nutting's Flycatcher (Myiarchus nuttingi) is a medium-sized bird with a drab gray-brown crown, gray throat and breast, and a yellow belly. It can be distinguished from similar species by its slightly brighter overall plumage, bushier crest, and distinctive calls, such as a loud "wheek!". This flycatcher breeds in dry tropical forests and thorn scrub from western Mexico to northwestern Costa Rica and is a year-round resident.

Nutting's Flycatcher

Myiarchus nuttingi

Diet

  • Primarily insects, including beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, flies, bees, wasps, caterpillars, and spiders.

  • Also feeds on small berries and other fleshy fruits, especially during the dry season.

  • Hunts from exposed perches, making short aerial sallies to capture insects or gleaning prey from leaves and branches.

Range

  • Found from northwestern and western Mexico south along the Pacific slope to Costa Rica.

  • In Mexico, it occurs from southern Sonora through Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas.

  • Common in the Zihuatanejo region, where it is a year-round resident.

  • Inhabits tropical dry forests, thorn scrub, woodland edges, second-growth, open forests, and semi-open habitats, generally from sea level to about 1,500 m.

Male / Female

  • Male: Grey head and throat, olive-brown back, pale gray breast, pale yellow belly, and rich rufous edging on the wings and tail. Slightly larger than the female.

  • Female: Nearly identical in plumage but generally a little smaller and duller.

  • Sexes cannot be reliably distinguished in the field except by subtle size differences or breeding behaviour.

Size

  • Length: 17–20 cm (6.7–7.9 in)

  • Wingspan: 27–30 cm (10.6–11.8 in)

  • Weight: 22–32 g

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