Tyrant Flycatchers

Western Flycatcher

Westlicher Schnäppertyrann

Empidonax difficilis

Tyrant Flycatchers1 photoFirst seen: 6 July 2026

The Western Flycatcher is a small olive bird with a broad pale eye-ring, two wing bars and a flat-headed appearance. It lives in shaded conifer and mixed forests of western North America. The bird catches insects in short flights from a perch and often returns to the same branch. Voice is usually more useful than plumage for separating it from similar Empidonax flycatchers. Pacific-slope and Cordilleran Flycatchers were combined again as this species in 2023.

ID tip: Voice is the honest answer for any Empidonax. The male's sharp, rising pseet whistle, given constantly in shady woods, is far more reliable than plumage.

First seen: 6 July 2026 · Discovery Park · 1 photo in the collection.

Places in my records

Locations where this species is supported by a dated first record, an unambiguous single-place outing or a reviewed assignment.

Discovery Park6 July 2026

Family: Tyrant Flycatchers (Tyrannidae)
Length: 13–17 cm
Wingspan: 20–23 cm
Regional status: Summer visitor (Pacific Northwest, USA)
Conservation: Least Concern LCIUCN Red List · retrieved 27 August 2026
Habitat: Shady conifer and mixed forest, damp ravines
Diet: Flying insects, some berries

Built from verified occurrence records, not drawn by hand. Core range = the countries holding 99% of all records; the rest are scattered or vagrant records. Record counts track where people watch birds as much as where the birds are, so the map shows presence, not abundance. Data: GBIF (CC BY 4.0). Basemap: Natural Earth.

Western Flycatcher

Places in my records

Selected photographs