North American field guide
Least Flycatcher
Empidonax minimus
Also known as:Chebec
Identification
Field notes
13-15 cm (5-6") Common in Canada and northern United States. Open woods, aspen groves, orchards, shade trees, villages, parks, rural roadsides, woodland borders.
Olive or grayish upperparts. Whitish throat. Grayish breast. Pale yellow belly and under tail. Narrow but distinct eye ring. Distinct wing bars. Grayer above and lighter below than other empidonax species.
Song: repeated "che-BEK"; short "wit" call often repeated in a rapid series.
Details in the field
Photo gallery
Watch and learn
Videos
Least Flycatcher Portrait
Credit: Larry BondWhere 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 · 1 rule
These are the observation paths the Bird Advisor can use to identify this species. Each rule is an alternative match.
Least Flycatcher
1 ruleRule 1 15 criteria · confidence 7
- Did the WINGS have STRIPES or PATCHES ?
- Yes · Unknown
- What colour was the BACK ?
- Olive (yellowish-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 ?
- Very short · Short · Medium · 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) · 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) · 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?
- Urban or residential area or at a feeder · Open area: field, prairie, meadow, farmland, tundra · Thickets or shrubs · Deciduous forest · Mixed forest · Mountainous Terrain · Wooded freshwater habitat · Freshwater marsh or wetland · Freshwater shoreline