| Red-breasted Flycatcher | |
|---|---|
 Male | |
 Female | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Muscicapidae |
| Genus: | Ficedula |
| Species: | Ficedula parva |
The Red-breasted Flycatcher (Ficedula parva) is a small common bird in the family Muscicapidae.
Description[]
They are brownish grey 11-12 cm long flycatchers with whitish underparts, light supercilia, conspicuous white-sided black tail feathers and white eyerings. The male has a grey head, ashy grey sides and an orange-red throat continuing into the breast, whilst the female lacks the orange-red throat, has a greyish brown head and dull brownish grey sides instead. Distinguishing the sexes in Red-breasted Flycatchers is complicated by the fact that the rusty color appears in males only in the second or third year. After the autumn moult, young males change their ochre-spotted plumage to a brownish outfit, which does not differ from the color of females. In the first spring, they nest without a bright orange-red throat.
Voice[]
Its song is a set of melodic whistles mainly replicated as "tiu-tiu-tiu-tiu-tiu, fiu-fiu-tiu, hiud-hiud-hiud-hiud, fi-tui-fi-tui-fi-tui". Their calls are a dry crackle "rrr" and a two-noted whistle "hi-li".
Behavior[]
Feeding[]
The Red-breasted Flycatcher is an aerial insectivore, dashing and swooping in on insects every now and then. Their diet primarily consists of insects and spiders, but can also eat small mollusks, and in the second half of the summer and autumn, it will also eat juicy fruit and eats some plants.
Breeding and Nesting[]
A solitary nester, this monogamous flycatcher nests in tree hollows and a clutch of 4 to 9 yellowish eggs are laid, usually 5 to 6. The nest is placed at a height of 1 to 12 m. The nest is neatly woven from moss, grass stalks, wood fibers, and plant "fluff". The outside is sometimes lined with thin twigs and lichen. The tray is lined with moss, sometimes with a small amount of horsehair. Incubation is done by the female for around 12 to 15 days, starting from when the last egg is laid or 1-2 days (eggs) earlier. The chicks, which are fed by both parents, fledge after 11-15 days.
Distribution and Habitat[]
The Red-breasted Flycatcher is distributed in Eurasia from Eastern and Southeastern Europe to the east to the western slopes of the Ural Mountains and migrates to southern Asia for the winter. It inhabits coniferous, mixed and deciduous forests. It is also found in floodplain forests and thickets, parks, old orchards and as an exception in vineyards.