Empidonax oberholseri
The American Dusky Flycatcher (*Empidonax oberholseri*) is a small, unassuming passerine bird, renowned among birders for the identification challenges it presents. Typically measuring 13-15 cm in length with a wingspan of 20-22 cm and weighing 8-13 grams, it exhibits the classic 'Empid' plumage of dull gray-olive upperparts and paler underparts. Distinctive field marks include a generally pale, often teardrop-shaped eye-ring, two faint wing bars, a relatively long primary projection, and a s...
Breeds in dry, open coniferous or mixed coniferous-deciduous forests and shrublands, favoring scattered clearings with undergrowth at mid to high elevations in mountainous regions.
Primarily insectivorous, feeding on a wide variety of insects including flies, wasps, beetles, moths, and grasshoppers, captured primarily by aerial hawking (sallying) or gleaning from vegetation.
Active during the day, the American Dusky Flycatcher is a classic 'sally-gleaner,' perching quietly on an exposed branch, scanning for insect prey, and then darting out to snatch it from the air or glean it from foliage. Males establish and vigorously defend breeding territories through persisten...
The American Dusky Flycatcher breeds across western North America, extending from southern British Columbia, central Alberta, and southwestern Saskatchewan south through eastern Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and into the mountains of nor...
Least Concern
- The American Dusky Flycatcher is widely considered one of the most challenging North American birds to identify, earning it the nickname 'Empid. - Its scientific name, *oberholseri*, honors American ornithologist Harry C. Oberholser, who described many bird species. - Unlike the similar Gray Fl...