Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, non-breeding; January; Kenedy Co., TX

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Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, female, November

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A tiny, long-tailed bird of deciduous forests and scrublands, the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher makes itself known by its soft but emphatic "spee" calls and its constant motion. By flicking its white-edged tail from side to side, the gnatcatcher may scare up hiding insects.

Description

• Tiny bird.
• Long tail.
• Bluish gray back.
• White underside.
• White eyering.
• White outer tail feathers.
• Small, thin bill.
• No wingbars.

• Size: 10-11 cm (4-4 in)
• Wingspan: 16 cm (6 in)
• Weight: 5-7 g (0.18-0.25 ounces)

Sex Differences

Sexes similar, breeding male slightly darker gray and with black line from bill to behind eyes.

Sound

Song soft, warbling, complex series of rambling jumbles. Call a thin, nasal "spee."

Conservation Status

Expanded breeding range northward over last century. Common, with no significant population increases or decreases.

Other Names

Gobemoucherons Gris-bleu (French)
Perlita Común, Perlita Grisilla (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• The Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is the northernmost-occurring species of gnatcatcher, and the only truly migratory one. Most members of its genus are resident in the Neotropics.

• The soft, rambling song of the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher usually contains some mimicked songs of other bird species.

Sources used to construct this page:

Ellison, Walter G. 1992. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea). In The Birds of North America, No. 23 (A. Poole, P. Stettenheim, and F. Gill, Eds.). Philadelphia: The Academy of Natural Sciences; Washington, DC: The American Ornithologists' Union.