Page 341 - Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (DK - RSPB)

FLYCATCHERS
Order Passeriformes Family Muscicapidae Species Muscicapa striata
Spotted Flycatcher bold dark
eye

long, narrow soft brown head,
wings spotted subtly streaked
crown on crown quite
thick
bill
cream spots
on back
plain grey-
brown back
plain
tail
pale feather
ADULT edges on
wings soft, pale
grey-brown
IN FLIGHT
streaks on
breast
silvery white
underside
JUVENILE
long wingtips short
black legs
ADULT
FLIGHT: strong, quick, agile; swooping over long
distances with bursts of wingbeats; catches flies with
rapid twists, returning quickly to perch.
long, plain
any birds take the occasional fly in mid-air but brown tail
Mflycatchers specialize in it: not in continuous held
flight, like swallows, but flying out from a perch and downwards
back again.This gives the Spotted Flycatcher a sharp-
eyed, constantly alert appearance that is very appealing even if its
plumage lacks strong colours or pattern.This slim, upright, short-
legged bird is a late spring arrival from Africa, spreading out into
places with “edge” habitats, such as woodland clearings,
allotments, parks, churchyards, and tennis courts, when open
space meets cover for nesting and somewhere to perch.
VOICE Short, slightly metallic or scratchy, unmusical tzic or tzee,
tzee-tsuk tsuk; song of similar quality, short, scratchy, weak warble.
NESTING Cup of grass, leaves, moss, and feathers in creeper, old
nest, cavity in wall, or open-fronted nest box; 3–5 eggs; 1 or 2
broods; June–August.
FEEDING Mostly catches insects in air, after flight from perch OPEN PERCH
(from near ground level to treetop height); usually returns to A perch with a view of insects that catch the light as they
same perch. cross sunlit clearings lets this flycatcher find a good meal.
SIMILAR SPECIES OCCURRENCE
Breeds almost throughout Europe
GARDEN WARBLER PIED FLYCATCHER 2; except in Iceland, present from
see p.314 see p.340
May to September and often a
plainer late arrival in spring. In open
wing
woodland, parkland, gardens
less with bushes and trees, and
shorter upright similar places.
tail
white stripe Seen in the UK
on wings J F M A M JJ A S O N D
Length 14cm (5 1 ⁄2in) Wingspan 23–25cm (9–10in) Weight 14–19g ( 1 ⁄2 – 11 ⁄16oz)
Social Solitary Lifespan 3–5 years Status Declining
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