Black Phoebe

Black Phoebe

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

A small black-and-white flycatcher of the Southwest, the Black Phoebe is often found around people, but nearly always near water.

Description

• Small songbird; medium-sized flycatcher.
• Black above and below.
• White belly and under tail.
• Wags tail.

• Size: 16 cm (6 in)
• Weight: 15-22 g (0.53-0.78 ounces)

Sex Differences

Sexes alike.

Sound

Song a broken series of whistled phrases. Each phrase made of two notes, the second downslurred. "Tee-hee, Tee-hoo."

Conservation Status

Populations in United States increasing. Benefits from many human activities, but destruction of riparian habitats and diversion of water is a concern.

Other Names

Moucherolle noir (French)
Mosquero negro (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• Although primarily insectivorous, the Black Phoebe occasionally catches fish. It dives into ponds to catch small minnows or other tiny fish, and may even feed fish to nestlings.

• The male Black Phoebe shows the female potential nest sites, hovering in front of a likely spot for 5 to 10 seconds. The female makes the final decision about where to place the nest and does all the construction.

Sources used to construct this page:

Wolf, B. O. 1997. Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans). In The Birds of North America, No. 268 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.