Great crested flycatchers and brown-crested flycatchers are two similar looking bird species found in North America. While they occupy overlapping ranges and have some superficial similarities, there are a number of key differences between these two flycatcher species when it comes to their physical features, behavior, habitat preferences, diet, and more. Read on to learn all about how to distinguish great crested flycatchers from their brown-crested cousins.
Range and Geographic Distribution
Great crested flycatchers have one of the widest breeding ranges of any flycatcher species in North America. They breed across most of the eastern and central United States and southern Canada, with their range extending from Nova Scotia southwest to Texas and southeast to Florida. They migrate to spend the winter in southern Florida, Central America, or northern South America.
Brown-crested flycatchers have a more limited range restricted to the southwestern United States and Mexico. Their breeding range stretches from southern California east to western Texas and south into central Mexico. They are migratory, wintering primarily in western Mexico.
So while there is some overlap, brown-crested flycatchers generally occupy more southwestern and western parts of North America compared to the wider range of great crested flycatchers across eastern North America. This distribution makes it unlikely to find both species together across much of their ranges.
Identification and Field Marks
When seen side-by-side, these two flycatcher species can be distinguished by a number of physical differences:
Size and Shape:
– Great crested flycatchers are noticeably larger with a body length around 6.3-7.5 inches and wingspan around 11-13 inches.
– Brown-crested flycatchers are more diminutive at just 5.1-5.9 inches in length and a wingspan around 9 inches.
– Great crested flycatchers have a stouter, larger-billed appearance compared to the more petite, delicate profile of brown-crested flycatchers.
Color Pattern:
– Great crested flycatchers have olive-gray upperparts, a lemon-yellow belly, and reddish-orange lower breast. The most distinctive feature is the bold, black-and-white stripes on the head.
– Brown-crested flycatchers have grayish-brown upperparts and a pale yellowish-gray underside. The throat and upper breast appear whitish. The head is distinctly marked by a prominent brown crest.
Bills and Eyes:
– Great crested flycatchers have a heavy black bill with a pale lower mandible and dark brown irises.
– Brown-crested flycatchers have smaller bills that are black on top and orange below. Their eyes are reddish-brown.
Legs and Feet:
– Great crested flycatchers have black legs and feet.
– Brown-crested flycatchers have flesh-colored legs and feet.
Tail Shape:
– Great crested flycatchers have a somewhat long, squared-off tail.
– Brown-crested flycatchers have a shorter tail that is distinctly notched at the tip.
So in summary, the boldly striped head, large size, heavy bill, black legs, and squared tail are indicative of a great crested flycatcher, while the small size, prominent crest, smaller orange-based bill, pale legs, and notched tail point to a brown-crested flycatcher. Paying attention to these physical differences makes identifying these species relatively straightforward in most cases.
Geographic Variation and Similar Species
Both great crested and brown-crested flycatchers exhibit some geographic variation in plumage across their breeding ranges. This can make identification slightly more tricky in certain areas.
Some great crested flycatcher populations in the southwest and Texas have paler gray upperparts compared to their eastern counterparts. However, they still show the distinct head pattern and large bill of typical great cresteds.
Out west, brown-crested flycatchers located in New Mexico and Arizona have slightly duller plumage overall. But they retain the small-bodied proportions, notched tail, prominent crest, and flesh-colored legs of brown-cresteds.
There are a few other flycatcher species with minor similarities to great crested and brown-crested flycatchers, but none should be readily mistaken with careful observation:
– Ash-throated flycatchers lack the bold head patterns and have prominent pale throats.
– Dusky-capped flycatchers of Central America have olive upperparts and yellow underparts but lack a well-defined head pattern.
– Sulphur-bellied flycatchers are larger with bright yellow underparts and sulphur-yellow bellies.
So while geographic variation introduces some subtle differences in appearance, these two species remain distinctive compared to other North American flycatchers.
Voice and Sounds
Listen for the characteristic vocalizations of these species as another identification clue:
– Great crested flycatchers have a loud, rolling “wheep” or “wee-hee-hee” call often given in a series. They also make softer, whistled “wee” calls.
– Brown-crested flycatchers deliver a loud, descending “pseet” and chatter with rhythmic “pit-pit” notes.
So the more melodious, bold calls of great crested stand apart from the harsh single notes and staccato chatters of brown-crested. However, be aware these species may mimic each other’s sounds occasionally.
Behavior and Habits
There are some subtle differences in the habits and behavior of these two flycatcher species:
Foraging:
– Great crested flycatchers often forage higher up, taking flying insects from high perches.
– Brown-crested flycatchers forage closer to the ground, hawking insects from low perches and foliage.
Movement:
– Great crested flycatchers move more deliberately with direct flight on broad, rounded wings.
– Brown-crested flycatchers are more erratic in their movements with quick, darting flights on more pointed wings.
Aggression:
– Great crested flycatchers are highly territorial and aggressive, actively attacking intruders with loud calls and aggressive displays.
– Brown-crested flycatchers are less aggressive and more likely to retreat from confrontations.
Nest Sites:
– Great crested flycatchers nest in tree cavities, nest boxes, or abandoned woodpecker holes, usually high up.
– Brown-crested flycatchers nest in a small cup nest placed out on a horizontal tree limb, often only 5-15 feet above ground.
So in many aspects of their behavior, great cresteds often take the more direct, aggressive, and higher-up approach, while brown-cresteds behave in a more low-key, discreet, and cautious manner by comparison.
Habitat Preferences
The habitats frequented by these two flycatcher species also show some telling differences:
– Great crested flycatchers occupy a variety of wooded habitats across their range including deciduous and mixed forests, parks, riparian areas, orchards, and woodlots.
– Brown-crested flycatchers are birds of open woodlands, especially oak savannahs. They also frequent arroyos, canyons, and scrubby desert washes lined with cottonwoods or sycamores.
So great crested flycatchers are more likely to be found in denser, wetter woodlands and forest interiors, while brown-crested flycatchers stick to drier open woodlands and scrubby canyon bottoms. Habitat can be a good clue to distinguish their ranges.
Diet and Feeding
As aerial insectivores, flycatchers share some similarities in their diets. But the following differences in feeding habits exist between these species:
– Great crested flycatchers take a wide variety of flying insects like beetles, moths, bees, wasps, flies, and ants. They occasionally eat berries.
– Brown-crested flycatchers eat insects gleaned from foliage such as caterpillars, mantids, true bugs, grasshoppers, beetles, and ants. Less aerial as great cresteds.
– Great crested flycatchers regularly hawk flying insects from high exposed perches.
– Brown-crested flycatchers typically glean and sally for insects from within dense trees and shrubs.
So great crested flycatchers take more diverse aerial prey, while brown-crested flycatchers concentrate more on gleaning stationary insects from vegetation. Their tactics align with their more open versus dense habitat preferences.
Breeding and Nesting
As members of the Tyrannidae family of suboscine passerines, the breeding biology of these two flycatchers is fairly similar in some respects:
– Both species are monogamous, pairing up on breeding territories for the season.
– Clutch sizes range from 3-6 eggs for each species.
– Only the female builds the nest and incubates the eggs in both species.
– The male feeds and assists in defending both nests.
– Parental care extends to both parents feeding the nestlings.
However, differences in their nest placement and nest structure are more apparent:
Great crested flycatcher nest sites:
– Cavities in dead trees, nest boxes, or old woodpecker holes.
– Usually high up, averaging around 20 feet or more above ground.
– Lined with grasses, weeds, moss, feathers, shed snakeskin, paper, or plastic.
Brown-crested flycatcher nests:
– Small, compact cup nests in tree branches.
– Fairly low, an average of just 6 feet up in a tree or shrub.
– Constructed of grasses, leaves, feathers, and bound with spider webs.
So great crested flycatchers are cavity nesters, placing nests high in dead trees, while brown-cresteds build delicate cup nests lower down in the limbs of live trees and shrubs.
Conservation Status
Both of these flycatcher species are currently experiencing population declines across parts of their range:
– Great crested flycatcher numbers are dropping at an estimated 1.3% per year across their breeding range, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey.
– Brown-crested flycatchers are declining even more steeply at approximately 3.2% annually and have lost an estimated 50% of their population in the last 50 years.
While great crested flycatchers remain common as a species, local declines are a concern and their widespread range does not preclude future threats.
The brown-crested flycatcher’s small population size, limited breeding distribution, and ongoing declines are more alarming. Habitat loss across the Southwest has likely contributed significantly.
Conservation actions recommended for these species include:
– Protecting remaining riparian bottomlands, canyons, and open savannahs vulnerable to development.
– Maintaining large snags and dead trees that provide nest cavities for great cresteds.
– Reducing pesticide use which diminishes their insect food resources.
– Monitoring populations through breeding bird surveys and atlases.
Conclusion
While great crested flycatchers and brown-crested flycatchers share some superficial similarities as small, insect-eating tyrant flycatchers, important distinctions exist between these species in their size, plumage, vocalizations, behaviors, preferred habitats, and nest sites. Their ranges also occupy predominantly eastern versus western North America respectively. Being aware of their key distinguishing traits allows observant birders to confidently differentiate these two species in the field. Conserving the remaining populations and habitats of both flycatchers will be important objectives going forward, as these aerial insectivores face an array of environmental threats across different regions.