Alder Flycatcher

Empidonax alnorum

Also known as:Traill's Flycatcher

Explore this bird

Identification

Field notes

13-15 cm (5-6") Common in Canada and northern United States. Deciduous forests, willow, alders, streamside and lakeside thickets.

Brownish-gray upperparts. Whitish throat. Pale olive breast. Pale yellow belly. More distinct eye ring than Willow Flycatcher. Distinct wing bars.

Can only be reliably told from Willow flycatcher by its wetter habitat and distinct voice.

Song: downward accented "fee-bee-o"; also a "wee-bee" and a "wheer".

Details in the field

Photo gallery

1 photo

Credit: Larry Bond

Watch and learn

Videos

2 videos

Alder Flycatcher Portrait

Credit: Larry Bond

Alder Flycatcher in Maine

Credit: Wild Bird and Nature Videos by McElroy Productions

Where it lives

Distribution map

Source legend · original intervals

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Unshaded in source · does not imply absence

Bird Advisor Identification rules 1 variant 2 rules

These are the observation paths the Bird Advisor can use to identify this species. Each rule is an alternative match.

Alder Flycatcher

2 rules

Rule 1 16 criteria confidence 6

Did the WINGS have STRIPES or PATCHES ?: Yes · Unknown
What colour was the BACK ?: Olive (yellowish-green) · Green · Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
What colour was the BELLY ?: White, or pale (grayish-white) · Yellow · Olive (yellowish-green) · Gray, or blue-gray · Unknown
What colour PATTERN if any was shown on the BREAST ?: Uniform color · Unknown
What colour was the BREAST ?: White, or pale (grayish-white) · Yellow · Olive (yellowish-green) · Gray, or blue-gray · Unknown
What colour was the THROAT ?: White, or pale (grayish-white) · Unknown
What SHAPE was the BILL ?: Straight and slender · Straight and thick · Conical and slender · Flattened · Unknown
What LENGTH was the BILL ?: Short · Medium · Long · Unknown
What FACIAL or HEAD features were noted if any ?: Light area over, below, behind or around the eye · NONE of the above or a PLAIN unmarked FACE · Unknown
What colour was the TOP of HEAD ?: Olive (yellowish-green) · Green · Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
What was the predominant colour of the HEAD ?: Olive (yellowish-green) · Green · Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
How BIG was the bird ?: Smaller than a sparrow · Sparrow-sized
What TYPE of bird was seen ?: Warbler-like · Songbird (ground or perching bird)
WHEN was the bird seen ?: Spring · Summer · Fall
What type of environment was the bird seen in?: Open area: field, prairie, meadow, farmland, tundra · Thickets or shrubs · Deciduous forest · Coniferous forest · Mixed forest · Mountainous Terrain · Wooded freshwater habitat · Freshwater marsh or wetland · Freshwater shoreline
WHERE was the bird seen ?: Northeastern Canada or United States · Northwestern Canada or United States

result:868-alder-flycatcher:1:1 Source: 868 Alder Flycatcher, row 1

Rule 2 16 criteria confidence 2

Did the WINGS have STRIPES or PATCHES ?: Yes · Unknown
What colour was the BACK ?: Olive (yellowish-green) · Green · Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
What colour was the BELLY ?: White, or pale (grayish-white) · Yellow · Olive (yellowish-green) · Gray, or blue-gray · Unknown
What colour PATTERN if any was shown on the BREAST ?: Uniform color · Unknown
What colour was the BREAST ?: White, or pale (grayish-white) · Yellow · Olive (yellowish-green) · Gray, or blue-gray · Unknown
What colour was the THROAT ?: White, or pale (grayish-white) · Unknown
What SHAPE was the BILL ?: Straight and slender · Straight and thick · Conical and slender · Flattened · Unknown
What LENGTH was the BILL ?: Short · Medium · Long · Unknown
What FACIAL or HEAD features were noted if any ?: Light area over, below, behind or around the eye · NONE of the above or a PLAIN unmarked FACE · Unknown
What colour was the TOP of HEAD ?: Olive (yellowish-green) · Green · Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
What was the predominant colour of the HEAD ?: Olive (yellowish-green) · Green · Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
How BIG was the bird ?: Smaller than a sparrow · Sparrow-sized
What TYPE of bird was seen ?: Warbler-like · Songbird (ground or perching bird)
WHEN was the bird seen ?: Spring · Summer · Fall
What type of environment was the bird seen in?: Open area: field, prairie, meadow, farmland, tundra · Thickets or shrubs · Deciduous forest · Coniferous forest · Mixed forest · Mountainous Terrain · Wooded freshwater habitat · Freshwater marsh or wetland · Freshwater shoreline
WHERE was the bird seen ?: Southeastern United States · Southwestern United States

result:868-alder-flycatcher:2:1 Source: 868 Alder Flycatcher, row 2