TYRANT FLYCATCHERS   -   TYRANNIDAE   -   PART I

Greenish Tyrannulet Phyllomyias virescens Itatiaia NP, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. A poor shot of a very hard-to-photograph canopy species, a scarce Atlantic Rainforest endemic. It's similar to a few other sympatric congeners, but is generally much brighter yellow below, brighter greenish above, and has a longer tail. (D3)

Sclater's Tyrannulet Phyllomyias sclateri sclateri A few km west of Chicoana, Salta province, Argentina. Lower Andean slopes from SE Peru to NW Argentina. This photo was taken at an odd angle, making the bird appear to be perched more vertically that it reall is. (S5)

Planalto Tyrannulet Phyllomyias fasciatus brevirostris(?) Michelin forest, Ituberá, Bahia state, Brazil. The most common and widespread Phyllomyias in the Atlantic Rainforest region, and a good basis for comparison with others of the same, often confusing, genus. Unfortunately at the moment this is the only one I have photographed. (D3)

Sooty-headed Tyrannulet Phyllomyias griseiceps Mangaloma reserve, Pichincha province, Ecuador. Now considered monotypic. The birds in W Ecuador sing a different song than those elsewhere in it's range; it could merit some investigation. (S6)

Black-capped Tyrannulet Phyllomyias nigrocapillus nigrocapillus Cerro Toledo, Loja province, Ecuador. A distinctive tyrannulet of temperate forest in the northern Andes. A poor shot, but at least recognizable. (S5)

Tawny-rumped-Tyrannulet Phyllomyias uropygialis Utuana reserve, Loja province, Ecuador. It has a very similar range as the Black-capped in the previous shot, but overall is much scarcer. (S5)		Gray-capped Tyrannulet Phyllomyias griseocapilla Macaé de Cima, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Endemic to the Atlantic Rainforest of Brazil. The yellow flanks that contrast with gray underparts are a good ID feature. (S6)

Forest Elaenia Myiopagis gaimardii macilvainii Parque Metropolitano, Panama City, Panama. A silly name as there are plenty of elaenias that live in forest. (S2f)

Foothill Elaenia Myiopagis olallai Rio Bombuscaro, Podocarpus NP, Zamora-Chinchipe province, Ecuador. This bird was tiny in the frame and has been blown up a lot here. I'm not sure that it is identifiable based on the features visible (it is best ID'd by voice in any case). This species was only described in the year 2000 (Coopmans, P. and N. Krabbe. 2000. A new species of flycatcher (Tyrannidae: Myiopagis) from eastern Ecuador and eastern Peru), previously probably having been overlooked due to it's similarity in plumage with Forest Elaenia M. gaimardii, with can occur together with it. (S5)

Pacific Elaenia Myiopagis subplacens Chaparrí reserve, Lambayeque department, Peru. Endemic to the Tumbesian region of W Ecuador and NW Peru, where it is common in dry woodland and forest. (S6)

Greenish Elaenia Myiopagis viridicata placens La Soledad, Oaxaca state, Mexico. (S5)

Yellow-bellied Elaenia Elaenia flavogaster flavogaster Michelin forest, Ituberá, Bahia state, Brazil. Elaenias can be one of the biggest identification problems in South America. This one is probably the most common and widespread of the genus, and usually one of the easier ones, but can also be difficult when in worn plumage and not vocalizing. (D3)		Yellow-bellied Elaenia Elaenia flavogaster subpagana Las Guacamayas, Chiapas state, Mexico. Racial variation seems pretty minor in this species. (S5)

White-crested Elaenia Elaenia albiceps griseigularis Reserva Geobotanica Pululahua, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S5)

Olivaceous Elaenia Elaenia mesoleuca Algulhas Negras road, Itatiaia NP, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Endemic to the Atlantic Rainforest, where it prefers edge of scrubby woodland and scrubby clearings. Not a particularly distinctive species - when not vocalizing (and this bird was), it can be tough to ID with certainty. (S6)

Slaty Elaenia Elaenia strepera Rio Sosa, Tucumán province, Argentina. Perhaps the easiest Elaenia to identify thanks to its predominantly gray plumage. It is a long distance migrant, breeding in the Andes of southern Bolivia and northern Argentina in the austral summer, and wintering mainly in Venezuela. (D3)

Mottle-backed Elaenia Elaenia gigas Cabañas Yankuam, Zamora-Chinchipe province, Ecuador. One of the most distinctive and easiest to identify of all the elaenias, with it's double crest split by a fan of white feathers. It is found in the eastern Amazon and in the adjacent Andean foothills. (S6)

Plain-crested Elaenia Elaenia cristata cristata Chapada dos Guimarães, Mato Grosso state, Brazil. A specialist in low, scrubby savannas. The well-defined, dark, triangular crest is usually distinctive. Compare the crest shape to the Yellow-bellied Elaenia above, which often occurs together with Plain-crested. (D3)

Plain-crested Elaenia Elaenia cristata cristata Gran Sabana, Bolívar state, Venezuela. A different angle. In this shot it looks more like a lark than a flycatcher... (D3)

Highland Elaenia Elaenia obscura sordida Ilha Comprida, São Paulo state, Brazil. A poorly-named species, as it can occur all the way down to sea level in Brazil. Shape alone is usually enough to ID this one, with a very small head relative to its body size, and the lack of any real crest. (D2)		Highland Elaenia Elaenia obscura sordida Chapada de Diamantina, Bahia state, Brazil. Another example to demonstrate the plumage variation within even the same subspecies. However, it still has the typical small, round head. (D3)

Yellow-bellied Tyrannulet Ornithion semiflavum Campamento La Jungla, Catemaco, Veracruz state, Mexico. This genus is typically high in the canopy and very tough to photograph. This little guy came down amazingly low and close in response to playback. (S5f)

White-lored Tyrannulet Ornithion inerme Yasuní Research Station, Orellana province, Ecuador. (S6)

Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet Camptostoma obsoletum obsoletum(?) Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. (S5f)

Suiriri Flycatcher Suiriri suiriri affinis Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. This is one of the yellow-bellied races, often split off as Campo Suiriri. (S5f)

Chapada Flycatcher Suiriri islerorum Chapada dos Guimarães, Mato Grosso state, Brazil. This species was only described in 2001. Note the pale tips to the tail feathers, a good feature to distinguish it from the similar Suiriri Flycatcher S. suiriri (above). This photo was published in the first edition of Neotropical Birding. (D3)		Chapada Flycatcher Suiriri islerorum Near Três Marias, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Another angle of a different bird in a spot towards the eastern limit of its known range. (S5)

White-tailed Tyrannulet Mecocerculus poecilocercus Tandayapa Bird Lodge, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S6)

White-banded Tyrannulet Mecocerculus stictopterus stictopterus Reserva Geobotánica Pululahua, Pichincha province, Ecuador. A common Andean species, replacing White-tailed Tyrannulet (previous) at higher elevations where they occur together. The two are fairly similar in plumage, but this species has pure white wingbard and lacks the white in the undertail. (S6)

White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys leucophrys Calilegua NP, Jujuy province, Argentina. A typical Andean flycatcher, occuring from Venezuela all the way to northern Argentina. There is a far amount of racial variation in this species, especially in the color of the wingbard. Compare the white wingbars of the nominate race here with the photos below. (S5)

White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys rufomarginatis Papallacta Pass, Napo province, Ecuador. This is one of the races with rufous wingbars, which can be seen quite well in the bird on the right. (S5)		White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys rufomarginatis Yanacocha, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S5)