Myiarchus

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Myiarchus
Myiarchus tyrannulus 1.jpg
Brown-crested flycatcher
Myiarchus tyrannulus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Tyrannidae
Genus: Myiarchus
Cabanis, 1844
Type species
Muscicapa ferox
Gmelin, JF, 1789

Myiarchus is a genus of birds in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae. Most species are fairly similar in appearance and are easier to separate by voice than by plumage.

Contents

Myiarchus flycatchers are fairly large tyrant-flycatchers at 16–23 cm (6.3–9 in) long. They are all partially crested with a brown to gray back and head, a rufous to blackish tail and yellow to pale underparts (only exception is the rufous flycatcher with rufous underparts). They typically forage by perching on an open branch and looking outward and downward for prey, which primarily consists of insects. Once it spots a potential meal, the flycatcher rapidly and directly flies at the insect, which is normally on the exposed upper surface of a leaf or twig. It hovers briefly before the insect before grabbing it in its beak and flying away to typically a new perch. [1]

Taxonomy

The genus Myiarchus was introduced in 1844 by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis. [2] The name combines the Ancient Greek muia meaning "fly" with arkhos meaning "ruler" or "chief". [3] Cabanis did not specify a type species for the genus but this was designated as the short-crested flycatcher by George Gray in 1855. [4] [5]

The genus contains 22 species: [6]

Related Research Articles

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The tyrant flycatchers (Tyrannidae) are a family of passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America. They are considered the largest family of birds known to exist in the world, with more than 400 species. They are the most diverse avian family in every country in the Americas, except for the United States and Canada. The members vary greatly in shape, patterns, size and colors. Some tyrant flycatchers may superficially resemble the Old World flycatchers, which they are named after but are not closely related to. They are members of suborder Tyranni (suboscines), which do not have the sophisticated vocal capabilities of most other songbirds.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great crested flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The great crested flycatcher is a large insect-eating bird of the tyrant flycatcher family. It is the most widespread member of the genus Myiarchus in North America, and is found over most of the eastern and mid-western portions of the continent. It dwells mostly in the treetops and rarely is found on the ground.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tawny-flanked prinia</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown-crested flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The brown-crested flycatcher is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gray kingbird</span> Species of bird

The gray kingbird or grey kingbird, also known as pitirre, petchary or white-breasted kingbird, is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatchers family Tyrannidae. The species was first described on the island of Hispaniola, then called Santo Domingo, thus the dominicensis name.

<i>Myiozetetes</i> Genus of birds

Myiozetetes is a small genus of passerine birds in the tyrant flycatcher family. The four species occur in tropical Central and South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golden-bellied flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The golden-bellied flycatcher is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family. It is an endemic resident breeder in Costa Rica and western Panama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ash-throated flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The ash-throated flycatcher is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiny hawk</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flammulated flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The flammulated flycatcher is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae. It was formerly placed in the monotypic genus Deltarhynchus but was moved to the genus Ramphotrigon based on genetic analysis. It is endemic to the dry deciduous forest, arid thorn forest, and scrubby woodland of Mexico’s Pacific coast. The flycatcher is an olive to gray-brown bird with a streaked, pale gray chest, white throat, black bill, dark gray feet, and dark brown wings. It is a skulking bird that typically remains hidden in the underbrush. It feeds by gleaning insects off of leaves and twigs that it spots from an exposed perch. The female lays approximately three eggs in a nest made in a shallow tree cavity.

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Hemitriccus is a genus of small South American birds in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae. They are commonly known as tody-tyrants or bamboo tyrants, but the former name is also shared with several members of the genus Poecilotriccus. Several species from the genus Hemitriccus are very similar, and consequently best separated by their voice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cliff flycatcher</span> Species of bird

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<i>Myiagra</i> Genus of birds, mostly flycatchers

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Short-crested flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The short-crested flycatcher is a species of bird in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yucatan flycatcher</span> Species of bird

The Yucatan flycatcher is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae.

References

  1. Lanyon, Wesley (1982). "Behavior, morphology, and systematics of the Flammulated Flycatcher of Mexico" (PDF). Auk. 99 (3): 414–423.
  2. Cabanis, Jean (1844). "Avium conspectus quae in Republica Pernana reperiuntur et pleraeqne observatae vel collectae sunt in itinere". Archiv für Naturgeschichte (in Latin). 10 (1): 262–317 [272].
  3. Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 263. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  4. Gray, George Robert (1855). Catalogue of the Genera and Subgenera of Birds Contained in the British Museum. London: British Museum. p. 49.
  5. Traylor, Melvin A. Jr, ed. (1979). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 8. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 194.
  6. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2019). "Tyrant flycatchers". World Bird List Version 9.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 1 July 2019.