Great Crested Flycatcher

Myiarchus crinitus

Least Concern · IUCN Red List

LCLeast ConcernInvertebratesWoodlandCavity nestSmall · 32 g

What the Great Crested Flycatcher sounds like

Sonogram of the Great Crested Flycatcher: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Jonathon Jongsma · Song · Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve, Dakota, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto
Sonogram of the Great Crested Flycatcher: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Philip Vanbergen · Call · Parish Governing Authority District 5 (near Washington), St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, United States · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto
Sonogram of the Great Crested Flycatcher: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Jonathon Jongsma · Call · Richardson Nature Center, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

Adult great crested flycatchers usually measure between 17–21 cm (6.7–8.3 in) in length with a wingspan of around 34 cm (13 in). This bird usually weighs between 27–40 g (0.95–1.41 oz). There is no sexual dimorphism. All adults 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. Males will sing a three-part song composed of two short whistles: a wheerreep followed by a higher-pitched whee, and a soft low churr.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Great Crested Flycatcher

One bar for each month. Filled bars are the 6 months with records; pale bars are months with none. The wide bar is May, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Great Crested Flycatcher

Regular rangeRare visitor

The map shades 18 countries with regular records, and 1 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

Recorded as a rare visitor in Peru.

About the Great Crested Flycatcher

The great crested flycatcher is a large insect-eating bird of the tyrant flycatcher family. It is the most widespread member of the genus Myiarchus in North America, and is found over most of the eastern and mid-western portions of the continent. It dwells mostly in the treetops and rarely is found on the ground.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Side by side: Ash-throated Flycatcher vs Great Crested Flycatcher · Dusky-capped Flycatcher vs Great Crested Flycatcher · Brown-crested Flycatcher vs Great Crested Flycatcher

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