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Breeding habitat Found in a large variety of forest types, usually with a relatively open understory, but will tolerate a dense understory if the forest canopy is sparse. Forest habitats include northern hardwood, pine-oak, oak-hickory, bottomland hardwood and riparian, southern pine savannah and midwestern woodlots; also may be found in orchards, parks, roadsides, and suburban areas. Somewhat tolerant of disturbance, often occurring in forest openings, along edges, or around clearcuts and other cut-over areas. Conservation status Although a fairly common bird throughout its large range, the Eastern Wood-Pewee is showing consistent declines in nearly every region. These declines, combined with vulnerability to forest loss on its South American winter range, make it a species of high conservation concern. Understanding this species’ relationship with forest disturbance and fragmentation will be critical in maintaining future populations and reversing declines. Description Male: A medium-sized flycatcher; dull grayish olive nearly throughout, with a dusky "vested" appearance below, two pale wing-bars. Compared with similar, dull flycatchers, the wood-pewee lacks a black cap or conspicuous eye-ring, has longer, more pointed wings, and shows dark markings on the undertail coverts (diagnostic). Female: Same as adult male. Juvenile: Same as adult, but with buffier wing-bars. Vocalizations Songs: Most frequent song is a slurred pee-ah-wee!,a plaintive wee-ooo or wee-ur is also commonly heard, or slight variations including a slurred ah di dee are possible. Calls: Common call is a terse chip! note, but a variety of other calls have been recorded, such as a rapid, shrill pe-e-e-e-e-e when disturbed at the nest. Foraging strategy Primarily sallies out from an exposed perch to capture flying insects, usually returning to the same perch. Recorded foraging flights range from under 3 feet (less than a meter) to over 90 feet (30 meters). Occasionally takes insects from the ground or vegetation. Diet Primary prey are small flying insects, including flies, bees, butterflies, wasps, and beetles. Behavior and displays Courtship Nesting Nest site: Typically, nests are built on a horizontal limb well out from trunk, frequently on a dead twig on a living tree. Height: Ranges from 10–100 feet (3–30 meters) above the ground. Nest: A shallow cup of woven grass, weeds, wool, bark strips, twigs, roots, mosses, pine needles, or leaves camouflaged with spider webs and lichens. The cup is lined with hair, grass, moss, lichens and plant fibers. Eggs: 2–4 milky white to cream-colored eggs, marked with brown to purple speckles arranged in a wreath around large end. Incubation period: Appears to be 12–13 days, but this information is based on small or unknown sample sizes. Female incubates alone, but male feeds the female during incubation and remains near nest during periods of female absence. Nestling period: Young are altricial. Nestlings are brooded for at least 4–5 days. Nestling diet similar to that of adult. Probably leave the nest 16–18 days but needs to be confirmed by close observation. Fledgling period: Parents feed fledglings for an unknown period of time after fledging. Broods: Single brooded. Cowbird Parasitism: A fairly regular, but not a favorite, host of the Brown-headed Cowbird. Successfully fledges cowbirds, but no information on percentage of success. |
Ocean, ranging from southern
Canada (Saskatchewan to the Maritime Provinces) to northern Florida, the Gulf Coast and
central Texas. 
