Dusky-chested flycatcher

Dusky-chested flycatcher
Myiozetetes luteiventris - Dusky-chested Flycatcher (song)
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Tyrannidae
Genus:	Myiozetetes
Species:	M. luteiventris
Binomial name
Myiozetetes luteiventris (Sclater, PL, 1858)

The dusky-chested flycatcher (Myiozetetes luteiventris) is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. ^[2] It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. ^[3]

Taxonomy and systematics

The dusky-chested flycatcher was originally described as Elaenia luteiventris. ^[4] It was later moved to genus Myiozetetes but during the twentieth century was treated by some authors in genus Tyrannopsis . By the late 1900s it was again generally recognized in its present genus. ^[5]

The dusky-chested flycatcher has two subspecies, the nominate M. l. luteiventris (Sclater, PL, 1858) and M. l. septentrionalis (Blake, 1961). ^[2]

Description

The dusky-chested flycatcher is the smallest member of genus Myiozetetes. It is 14 to 15 cm (5.5 to 5.9 in) long and weighs about 16.5 g (0.58 oz). The sexes have almost the same plumage. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a grayish olive-brown crown and face with a mostly hidden yellow-orange patch in the center of the crown. Females have a smaller patch or none at all. Adults of both sexes have dark olive-brown upperparts. Their wings are dark olive-brown with faint and variable rufous edges on the flight feathers. Their throat is whitish with faint dusky streaks. Their underparts are bright yellow with an olive cast and smudgy dark olive streaks on the upper breast. Subspecies M. l. septentrionalis has essentially the same plumage with sometimes greener edges on the flight feathers. Both subspecies have a black iris, a stubby black bill, and black legs and feet. ^[6]

Distribution and habitat

The dusky-chested flycatcher has a disjunct distribution within the Amazon Basin. The nominate subspecies has by far the larger range. It is found from the southeastern quadrant of Colombia south through eastern Ecuador and eastern Peru into far northwestern Bolivia and east into southern Venezuela's Amazonas and northern Bolívar states and across Brazil's central Amazon basin to western Maranhão. Subspecies M. l. septentrionalis is found across Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and northern Brazil's Amapá state. The species inhabits the canopy of evergreen forest both terra firme and várzea ; shrubby forest edges, clearings, and openings caused by fallen trees; and the edges of rivers and lakes. ^[6] In elevation it reaches 500 m (1,600 ft) in Colombia, 600 m (2,000 ft) in Ecuador, 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in Peru, 350 m (1,100 ft) in Venezuela, and 600 m (2,000 ft) in Brazil. ^{[7] [8] [9] [10] [11]}

Behavior

Movement

The dusky-chested flycatcher appears to "wander rather widely" and might be a partial migrant. ^[6]

Feeding

The dusky-chested flycatcher feeds on insects and small fruits. It usually forages in pairs or small family groups though sometimes singly. It perches erect on an exposed branch as high as 20 m (65 ft) above the ground. It takes insect prey with short flights to glean or hover-glean it from foliage and only occasionally takes it in mid-air by hawking. It takes fruit also by gleaning from a perch or during a brief hover, but usually at a much lower height. It often feeds with other species in fruiting trees but seldom joins traveling mixed-species feeding flocks. ^[6]

Breeding

The dusky-chested flycatcher's breeding season has not been determined but includes May in Colombia. Its one known nest was a bulky domed cup with a side entrance, made from grass, and placed about 1 m (3 ft) below the top of a tall tree on the edge of the forest. Nothing else is known about the species' breeding biology. ^[6]

Songs and calls Listen to the dusky-chested flycatcher on xeno-canto

Vocalization

The dusky-chested flycatcher's most common call is "a nasal, cat-like meeow or softer neea". It makes a "fast nasal nyeeuw-nyeeuw, keep-kít or neea-ne-wít" when it is excited; sometimes pairs do this in duet. It also makes simple, often repeated, "keeuw or nyeeuw" calls. ^[6]

Status

The IUCN has assessed the dusky-chested flycatcher as being of Least Concern. It has a large range; its population size is not known and is believed to be stable. No immediate threats have been identified. ^[1] It is considered uncommon in Colombia, "scarce" in Ecuador, uncommon in Peru, "uncommon and local" in Venezuela, and from "uncommon to frequent" in Brazil. ^{[7] [8] [9] [10] [11]} It occurs in several national parks and other protected areas, and "most of its habitat is still in reasonably pristine condition". ^[6]

References

1. BirdLife International (2018). "Dusky-chested Flycatcher Myiozetetes luteiventris". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018: e.T22700593A130208529. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22700593A130208529.en . Retrieved 22 June 2025.
2. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (March 2025). "Tyrant flycatchers". IOC World Bird List. v 15.1. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
3. Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 30 March 2025. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved 30 March 2025
4. Sclater, Philip Lutley (1858). "Notes on a Collection of Birds received by M. Verreaux, of Paris, from the Rio Napo in the Republic of Ecuador". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London (in Latin and English). XXVI (1): 71. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
5. Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 30 March 2025. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved 30 March 2025
6. Mobley, J. A. (2020). Dusky-chested Flycatcher (Myiozetetes luteiventris), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.ducfly2.01 retrieved June 22, 2025
7. McMullan, Miles; Donegan, Thomas M.; Quevedo, Alonso (2010). Field Guide to the Birds of Colombia. Bogotá: Fundación ProAves. p. 164. ISBN   978-0-9827615-0-2.
8. Ridgely, Robert S.; Greenfield, Paul J. (2001). The Birds of Ecuador: Field Guide. Vol. II. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. pp. 526–527. ISBN   978-0-8014-8721-7.
9. Schulenberg, T.S.; Stotz, D.F.; Lane, D.F.; O'Neill, J.P.; Parker, T.A. III (2010). Birds of Peru. Princeton Field Guides (revised and updated ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. p. 468. ISBN   978-0691130231.
10. Hilty, Steven L. (2003). Birds of Venezuela (second ed.). Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press. p. 629.
11. van Perlo, Ber (2009). A Field Guide to the Birds of Brazil. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 324–325. ISBN   978-0-19-530155-7.