Western Flycatcher Similar Species Comparison

Small flycatcher with a peaked crown and teardrop-shaped eyering. Olive above and yellowish below, with two light wingbars.

Small flycatcher found in forested habitats. Olive overall, with individuals showing varying amounts of yellow below. Note peaked crown, teardrop-shaped eyering, and whitish wingbars. Bill is black above and orangish below.

Small flycatcher with a peaked crown, teardrop-shaped eyering, and two light wingbars. Olive above with varying amounts of yellow below. Flicks tail frequently (as do some other Western Empidonax flycatchers).

Rare visitor to eastern North America, usually in late fall. The combination of yellowish underparts and teardrop-shaped eyering helps in differentiating from eastern Empidonax flycatchers.

Small flycatcher with olive upperparts, two light wingbars, peaked crown, and teardrop-shaped eyering. Fairly broad bill is orangish below.

Nests on banks (as well as in trees, shrubs, and cavities, or on buildings and bridges). The female builds an elaborate cup nest, adding mosses and lichens to the outside of the nest.

Small, olive-backed flycatcher with teardrop-shaped eyering, peaked crown, and white wingbars.

Usually yellowish below, with darker wash across breast (but some individuals have very limited yellow).

Calls include a short "tsip" and a piercing "seet."

"Cordilleran" group breeds in dry evergreen and mixed forests in interior western North America, mainly along the Rocky Mountains and Mexico's Sierra Madre.

"Pacific-slope" group breeds in humid evergreen forests, pine-oak forests, and dense second-growth woodlands.