Pied Flycatcher
The Pied Flycatcher is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family and is 1 of the 4 species of Western Palearctic black and white flycatchers.
The breeding male Pied Flycatcher is mainly black above and white below with a large white wing patch, white tail sides and a small forehead patch. Non-breeding males, females and juveniles have the black replaced by a pale brown. The bill is black and it has the broad but pointed shape typical of aerial insectivores.
The Pied Flycatcher has a very large range and population size and so it is of “least concern” according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It breeds in most of Europe and west Asia where it can be found in deciduous woodlands, parks and gardens, with a preference for oak trees. It will sometimes use mature open conifer woodland where natural tree holes occur. It builds an open nest in a tree hole and it will readily adapt to nest boxes.
In the UK, the Pied Flycatcher is limited by geography and habitat to the north and west of the country where it prefers mature oak woodlands but also mature upland ash and birch woodlands. It has on average decreased in population by 25% within the last 25 years and it has ceased to breed in several parts of its former range.
The Pied Flycatcher is migratory, wintering mainly in tropical west Africa from mid September to mid April. It first arrives in its breeding areas from mid April to the end of May. Following breeding, return migration to Africa occurs between August and mid September.
The Pied Flycatcher is mainly insectivorous and its diet is composed nearly entirely of insects including flies, bees, wasps, ants, beetles, butterflies, moths, etc. but it will also eat fruit and seeds in late summer and autumn and on migration.
Date: 8th May 2022
Location: RSPB Ynys-hir, Ceredigion
The breeding male Pied Flycatcher is mainly black above and white below with a large white wing patch, white tail sides and a small forehead patch. Non-breeding males, females and juveniles have the black replaced by a pale brown. The bill is black and it has the broad but pointed shape typical of aerial insectivores.
The Pied Flycatcher has a very large range and population size and so it is of “least concern” according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It breeds in most of Europe and west Asia where it can be found in deciduous woodlands, parks and gardens, with a preference for oak trees. It will sometimes use mature open conifer woodland where natural tree holes occur. It builds an open nest in a tree hole and it will readily adapt to nest boxes.
In the UK, the Pied Flycatcher is limited by geography and habitat to the north and west of the country where it prefers mature oak woodlands but also mature upland ash and birch woodlands. It has on average decreased in population by 25% within the last 25 years and it has ceased to breed in several parts of its former range.
The Pied Flycatcher is migratory, wintering mainly in tropical west Africa from mid September to mid April. It first arrives in its breeding areas from mid April to the end of May. Following breeding, return migration to Africa occurs between August and mid September.
The Pied Flycatcher is mainly insectivorous and its diet is composed nearly entirely of insects including flies, bees, wasps, ants, beetles, butterflies, moths, etc. but it will also eat fruit and seeds in late summer and autumn and on migration.
Date: 8th May 2022
Location: RSPB Ynys-hir, Ceredigion
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Also in: Flycatchers
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