TYRANT FLYCATCHERS   -   TYRANNIDAE   -   PART I

Sclater's Tyrannulet Phyllomyias sclateri sclateri A few km west of Chicoana, Salta province, Argentina. Lower Andean slopes from SE Peru to NW Argentina. This photo was taken at an odd angle, making the bird appear to be perched more vertically that it reall is. (S5)

Planalto Tyrannulet Phyllomyias fasciatus brevirostris(?) Michelin forest, Ituberá, Bahia state, Brazil. The most common and widespread Phyllomyias in the Atlantic Rainforest region, and a good basis for comparison with others of the same, often confusing, genus. Unfortunately at the moment this is the only one I have photographed. (D3)

Sooty-headed Tyrannulet Phyllomyias griseiceps Mangaloma reserve, Pichincha province, Ecuador. Now considered monotypic. The birds in W Ecuador sing a different song than those elsewhere in it's range; it could merit some investigation. (S6)

Black-capped Tyrannulet Phyllomyias nigrocapillus nigrocapillus Cerro Toledo, Loja province, Ecuador. A distinctive tyrannulet of temperate forest in the northern Andes. A poor shot, but at least recognizable. (S5)

Tawny-rumped-Tyrannulet Phyllomyias uropygialis Utuana reserve, Loja province, Ecuador. It has a very similar range as the Black-capped in the previous shot, but overall is much scarcer. (S5)

Forest Elaenia Myiopagis gaimardii macilvainii Parque Metropolitano, Panama City, Panama. A silly name as there are plenty of elaenias that live in forest. (S2f)

Foothill Elaenia Myiopagis olallai Rio Bombuscaro, Podocarpus NP, Zamora-Chinchipe province, Ecuador. This bird was tiny in the frame and has been blown up a lot here. I'm not sure that it is identifiable based on the features visible (it is best ID'd by voice in any case). This species was only described in the year 2000 (Coopmans, P. and N. Krabbe. 2000. A new species of flycatcher (Tyrannidae: Myiopagis) from eastern Ecuador and eastern Peru), previously probably having been overlooked due to it's similarity in plumage with Forest Elaenia M. gaimardii, with can occur together with it. (S5)

Pacific Elaenia Myiopagis subplacens Jorupe reserve, Loja province, Ecuador. Endemic to the Tumbesian region of W Ecuador and NW Peru, where it is common in dry woodland and forest. (S5)

Greenish Elaenia Myiopagis viridicata placens La Soledad, Oaxaca state, Mexico. (S5)

Yellow-bellied Elaenia Elaenia flavogaster flavogaster Michelin forest, Ituberá, Bahia state, Brazil. Elaenias can be one of the biggest identification problems in South America. This one is probably the most common and widespread of the genus, and usually one of the easier ones, but can also be difficult when in worn plumage and not vocalizing. (D3)		Yellow-bellied Elaenia Elaenia flavogaster subpagana Las Guacamayas, Chiapas state, Mexico. Racial variation seems pretty minor in this species. (S5)

White-crested Elaenia Elaenia albiceps griseigularis Reserva Geobotanica Pululahua, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S5)

Slaty Elaenia Elaenia strepera Rio Sosa, Tucumán province, Argentina. Perhaps the easiest Elaenia to identify thanks to its predominantly gray plumage. It is a long distance migrant, breeding in the Andes of southern Bolivia and northern Argentina in the austral summer, and wintering mainly in Venezuela. (D3)

Plain-crested Elaenia Elaenia cristata cristata Chapada dos Guimarães, Mato Grosso state, Brazil. A specialist in low, scrubby savannas. The well-defined, dark, triangular crest is usually distinctive. Compare the crest shape to the Yellow-bellied Elaenia above, which often occurs together with Plain-crested. (D3)

Plain-crested Elaenia Elaenia cristata cristata Gran Sabana, Bolívar state, Venezuela. A different angle. In this shot it looks more like a lark than a flycatcher... (D3)

Highland Elaenia Elaenia obscura sordida Ilha Comprida, São Paulo state, Brazil. A poorly-named species, as it can occur all the way down to sea level in Brazil. Shape alone is usually enough to ID this one, with a very small head relative to its body size, and the lack of any real crest. (D2)		Highland Elaenia Elaenia obscura sordida Chapada de Diamantina, Bahia state, Brazil. Another example to demonstrate the plumage variation within even the same subspecies. However, it still has the typical small, round head. (D3)

Yellow-bellied Tyrannulet Ornithion semiflavum Campamento La Jungla, Catemaco, Veracruz state, Mexico. This genus is typically high in the canopy and very tough to photograph. This little guy came down amazingly low and close in response to playback. (S5f)

White-lored Tyrannulet Ornithion inerme Cristalino Jungle Lodge, Mato Grosso state, Brazil Digiscoped distantly from the top of the canopy tower. (D3)

Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet Camptostoma obsoletum obsoletum(?) Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. (S5f)

Suiriri Flycatcher Suiriri suiriri affinis Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. This is one of the yellow-bellied races, often split off as Campo Suiriri. (S5f)

Chapada Flycatcher Suiriri islerorum Chapada dos Guimarães, Mato Grosso state, Brazil. This species was only described in 2001. Note the pale tips to the tail feathers, a good feature to distinguish it from the similar Suiriri Flycatcher S. suiriri (above). This photo was published in the first edition of Neotropical Birding. (D3)		Chapada Flycatcher Suiriri islerorum Near Três Marias, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Another angle of a different bird in a spot towards the eastern limit of its known range. (S5)

White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys leucophrys Calilegua NP, Jujuy province, Argentina. A typical Andean flycatcher, occuring from Venezuela all the way to northern Argentina. There is a far amount of racial variation in this species, especially in the color of the wingbard. Compare the white wingbars of the nominate race here with the photos below. (S5)

White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys rufomarginatis Papallacta Pass, Napo province, Ecuador. This is one of the races with rufous wingbars, which can be seen quite well in the bird on the right. (S5)		White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys rufomarginatis Yanacocha, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S5)

Agile Tit-Tyrant Anairetes agilis Cerro Mongus, Carchi province, Ecuador. Inhabits high elevation forest in the Andes from Venezuela to Ecuador. (S5)

Yellow-billed Tit-Tyrant Anairetes flavirostris flavirostris Yavi, Jujuy province, Argentina. This subspecies has a unique migration, breeding in the high Andes of Argentina and Bolivia, and wintering in the low plains to the east of the mountains. (D3)

Tufted Tit-Tyrant Anairetes parulus aequatorialis La Cuesta del Obispo, Salta province, Argentina. The most widespread of the tit-tyrants, found from Colombia to Tierra del Fuego. (S5)

Torrent Tyrannulet Serpophaga cinerea grisea Bosque de Paz, Alajuela province, Costa Rica. While several members of this genus are closely tied to water, the Torrent Tyrannulet only occurs around rushing mountain streams and rivers, the same habitat as the dippers. (S5)

Sooty Tyrannulet Serpophaga nigricans Serra da Canastra National Park, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. (D3)

White-bellied Tyrannulet Serpophaga munda West of Chicoana, Salta province, Argentina. This species is lumped by some with White-crested Tyrannulet S. subcristata since their vocalizations seem to be identical. (S5)

Mouse-colored Tyrannulet Phaeomyias murina murina Chapada de Araripe, Ceará state, Brazil. This species can also be confusing. Look for the long, slender shape combined with brown plumage, two pale wingbars that often appear tan, and the pale super. (D3)

Mouse-colored Tyrannulet Phaeomyias murina inflava Bosque de Pomac, Lambayeque department, Peru. Ridgely and Greenfield (2001) treated the three races in SW Ecuador and NW Peru as a distinct species (Tumbesian Tyrannulet, P. tumbezana) based mainly on vocalizations. That might be the best course, but there has never been a systematic study of the species. (D2)

Yellow Tyrannulet Capsiempis flaveola flaveola Reserva Ecolgica de Guapi Assu, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. A fairly common bird over much of tropical Central and South America. In some areas it shows a predilection for bamboo. (S5f)

Bearded Tachuri Polystictus pectoralis brevipennis Karanambu Ranch, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo region, Guyana. Female. It specializes in savannas with tall grass, though they seem to be thinly spread even in the best habitat. (D3)

Gray-backed Tachuri Polystictus superciliaris Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Here's a cute little bird endemic to the savannas of interior Southeast Brazil. Cipó and Canastra are the best places I know to find it. (S5)

Bronze-olive Pygmy-Tyrant Pseudotriccus pelzelni annectens Mashpi road, Pichincha province, Ecuador. A scarce inhabitant of cloudforest understory from E Panama to S Peru. You can often locate it from the sharp snapping sound it makes with its wings. (S6)

Rufous-headed Pygmy-Tyrant Pseudotriccus ruficeps Yanacocha reserve, Pichincha province, Ecuador. This bird is a juvenile, lacking the rufous head of the adults. Despite being a young bird, it was singing loudly as the next photo illustrates. (S6)		Rufous-headed Pygmy-Tyrant Pseudotriccus ruficeps Yanacocha reserve, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S6)

Rufous-sided Pygmy-Tyrant Euscarthmus rufomarginatus Chapada dos Guimarães, Mato Grosso state, Brazil. An appalling photo, but this is a rather rare species. It has a large range, mainly in the cerrado of Brazil, but is incredibly localized and known only from relatively few sites. (D2)

Greater Wagtail-Tyrant Stigmatura budytoides gracilis Canudos-Jeremoaba road, Bahia state, Brazil. Very similar to the sympatric race bahiae of Lesser Wagtail-Tyrant (S. napensis). I identified this as S. budytoides based on the gray crown, clear yellow underparts, and solid white wing coverts. (D3)

Red-billed Tyrannulet Zimmerius cinereicapilla Afluente, San Martín department, Peru. The red bill can be hard to see in the field since you are often looking up on the bird in badly backlit conditions. I was lucky to get this one down low in front of a distant mountainside. (D2)		Golden-faced Tyrannulet Zimmerius chrysops chrysops Old Loja-Zamora Highway, Zamora-Chinchipe province, Ecuador. (S5)

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