Head south to see this flame-red, desert-dwelling bird. Learn where to find a vermilion flycatcher, and what their song sounds like.
What Does a Vermilion Flycatcher Look Like?
Look for a flash of brilliant red in the Southwest to spot a vermilion flycatcher. The flame-colored male certainly captures attention with his red head and breast, which provide a tasteful contrast to his black wings and black “mask” along his eyes. Females are less colorful; their head and wings are blackish-brown, and their white breast features brown streaks. If you look closely at her belly, you’ll spot reddish-orange feathers reminiscent of the male’s.
Range and Habitat
For most in the United States, spotting a vermilion flycatcher would likely mean going on a trip. Their limited range incorporates many Southwestern states, including parts of Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. They call portions of Texas and Arizona along the Mexico border home year-round. Interestingly, a few stragglers tend to surface along the gulf coast in winter, too.
Finding a vermilion flycatcher might mean getting in the car or on a plane, but thankfully, they’re not too tricky to spot within their range. Preferring open areas, they tend to appear in scrublands and farmlands as well as near streams and in deserts with a few trees.
Do Vermilion Flycatchers Migrate?
“A vermilion flycatcher visits my desert garden every January. This colorful bird is such a welcome sight! Where is it coming from and traveling to?” asks Birds & Blooms reader Rhonda Rogers of Tucson, Arizona.
Birding experts Kenn and Kimberly say, “Most of the flycatchers in North America are very drab, and most migrate long distances. The stunning vermilion flycatcher is a brilliant exception to both rules. In the Southwest, close to the Mexican border, they can be found all year in some places where trees grow along streams or around ponds. At other places in the same region, these flycatchers migrate short distances, moving to slightly higher elevations in summer. The one that visits your garden is probably not coming from very far away—perhaps from central Arizona, just a little to the north of you.”
Vermilion Flycatcher Diet
As is the case with other flycatchers such as the great crested and scissor-tailed, these birds dine on insects. They capture their meals by flying out from an exposed perch and snagging their snack in midair. Vermilion flycatchers eat a variety of insects, including grasshoppers, butterflies, wasps, and bees.
Nesting Habits
A male vermilion flycatcher impresses his ladylove with a flashy gift—like a butterfly or an eye-catching insect.
This species builds nests in the forks of trees, about eight to 20 feet off the ground. Usually, those trees are also located along streams. The female lays a clutch of two to four eggs, and she can have up to two broods in a season. The eggs are incubated for about two weeks. After another two weeks, young leave the nest.
Calls and Sounds
Males give a high, clear, peet-peet -a-weet. The song can vary by individual, but it typically rises in pitch and repeats several times. Adult birds call or chatter to each other, too.
Bird sounds courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Sources
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, “Vermilion Flycatcher: Life History“
- National Audubon Society, “Field Guide: Vermilion Flycatcher“
About the Experts
Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman are the official bird experts for Birds & Blooms. They are the creators of the Kaufman Field Guide series and they lead birding trips all over the world.
