Bird Guide

Pale-edged Flycatcher vs Swainson's Flycatcher

Pale-edged Flycatcher (Myiarchus cephalotes)

Pale-edged Flycatcher

Myiarchus cephalotes

Small26 gForest

The pale-edged flycatcher is 18 to 19 cm (7.1 to 7.5 in) long and weighs about 22 to 31 g (0.78 to 1.1 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a brownish olive crown; the crown has a slight crest and slightly darker center feathers that give a streaked appearance. Their face is otherwise pale gray. Their upperparts are olive-green. Their wings are mostly brownish olive with pale whitish to yellow outer edges on the secondaries and tertials. The wing's greater and median coverts have yellowish outer edges and tips; the latter show as two wing bars. Voice: The pale-edged flycatcher's dawn song is described as "a mellow, descending series of whistles: PEE pew-pew-pew-pew" and its calls as "a single, loud KIP!...a quiet, descending du-HEER mellow, rolling chatters". Another description of the song is "a fast piyp! peeyur followed by several peer notes" and a call as "a loud, clear pip or piup repeated over and over".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Pale-edged Flycatcher
Recorded by Rosa Elena Albornoz @rosaelena_naturaleza · Song · San Antonio De Los Altos (near Parroquia Macarao), Municipio Los Salias, Miranda, Venezuela · CC0
Photo: Don Henise · CC BY 2.0
Swainson's Flycatcher (Myiarchus swainsoni)

Swainson's Flycatcher

Myiarchus swainsoni

Small25 gForest

Swainson's flycatcher is 19.5 to 21 cm (7.7 to 8.3 in) long and weighs about 21 to 38 g (0.74 to 1.3 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a dull olive gray-green crown and upperparts with slightly browner uppertail coverts. The crown feathers form a slight crest. Their wings are mostly brown with rufous outer edges on the primaries. The secondaries and tertials have pale whitish yellow outermost webs and the tertials dirty white to rufous innermost webs. Their greater and median wing coverts have wide fuscous gray tips. Their tail is brown. Voice: The dawn song of Swainson's flycatcher is "alternated mournful whistles, huit notes and more complex phrases". Its typical call is also a mournful whistle.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Christoph Moning, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Christoph Moning · cc-by

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Pale-edged Flycatcher and Swainson's Flycatcher.