ID Keys: Males nearly unmistakable with brilliant red underparts and
head, with darker upperparts. Females primarily gray with lighter
underparts.
Unlike many North American flycatchers, the male Vermilion
Flycatcher is brilliantly colored, with bright red underparts and head, with
darker upperparts and a dark eye mask (see photo to the right). Females
are much more muted, being primarily gray and white (see photo at the bottom of
the page). Vermilion Flycatchers normally only reach the United States in
the extreme Southwest. Small numbers of birds do winter near the Gulf
Coast, but they only rarely stray as far north as South Dakota. They can
also be found throughout Mexico, and Central and South America. Males
perform a spectacular flight display, puffing themselves up, rising high in the
air, and then fluttering downward again in a process that may repeat itself many
times.
Habitat
Generally
found in open country with scattered trees, normally near rivers, streams, and
lakes. They may also occasionally be found in grassland or desert areas
far from water.
Diet
Feeds exclusively on insects.
Behavior
Forages by observing from a perch, and
flying out to capture insects when spotted, either catching them in mid-air,
or pouncing on them on the ground or in foliage.
Breeding
Non-breeder in South Dakota. In their
breeding range, the nest is a small cup, constructed of twigs, grasses, tree
bark, and other material, lined with softer and finer material such as hair,
down, or fine grasses. It is placed on a tree branch, anywhere from 6 to 30 feet
off the ground. The female lays 2 to 4 eggs, and she alone incubates them. The
young hatch after about two weeks, and fledge from the nest in another 12-14
days.
Song
The song is a high, fluttering series of
rising and falling notes, often given while in flight.
Migration
Generally a permanent resident throughout most of its range, although some
birds at the northern end of its range (southwestern U.S.) may move southward or
to lower elevations in the winter.
