Fun Black-capped Flycatcher Facts For Kids

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) is a bird species that lives in Central America. It is a mountainous bird that inhabits branches of oak trees at high altitudes of 8,038-10,826 ft (2,450-3,300 m).

It lives in dense forests, bushy pasture regions, and secondary forests of Costa Rica and western Panamas. The female 0f this species lays two white eggs and incubates them for 14-15 days, after which they hatch. Both sexes feed the fledglings for the next 17 days.

This flycatcher species has a round body, black head and back, whitish neck, black wings, and tails; the wings have brown wing bars. The black eyes are outlined with a distinctive white teardrop-shaped ring.

For more relatable content, check out these vermillion flycatcher facts and cockatoo facts for kids.

Black-Capped Flycatcher Interesting Facts

What type of animal is a black-capped flycatcher?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) is a bird.

What class of animal does a black-capped flycatcher belong to?

The black-capped flycatcher belongs to the Aves, Tyrannidae, Empidonax, and Passeriformes, class, family, genus, and order, respectively.

How many black-capped flycatchers are there in the world?

The exact number of black-capped flycatchers is unknown; they are categorized as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List.

Where does a black-capped flycatcher live?

The black-capped flycatcher habitat is dense oak forests in the highland region of Costa Rica and western Panama.

What is a black-capped flycatcher's habitat?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) is found in the high canopies of mountain oak forest and bushy pasture region. It prefers breeding in the high trees of forest areas. It lives in forest at mountain altitudes of 8,038-10,826 ft (2,450-3,300 m).

Who do black-capped flycatchers live with?

Black-capped flycatcher images, photos, and scientific records show that it often feeds and forages alone unless it is breeding.

How long does a black-capped flycatcher live?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) can live 6-10 years in the wild.

How do they reproduce?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) reproduces by laying eggs. The black-capped flycatcher female lays two small creamy or white-colored eggs in the nest. The black-capped flycatcher nest is cup-shaped, made of grass, moss, and plant fiber.

The nest is usually placed 6.5-39.3 ft (2–12 m) high on the top of a vertical tree fork. The female incubates the eggs alone for 15 days till hatching and another 17 days to fledging. During the nesting period, the black-capped flycatcher male brings the female food and prey.

What is their conservation status?

The Empidonax atriceps (black-capped flycatcher) is currently categorized as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List, which means there are more than 10,000 mature individuals in the world, and their population, although small, has seen a decrease of less than ten percent in the last ten years or three generations.

Black-Capped Flycatcher Fun Facts

What do black-capped flycatchers look like?

The black-capped flycatcher appearance is very distinctive with its small round body, black cap-like coloring on the top of the head and back, whitish feathers on the neck, and pale-yellow underbelly region. Its eyes have blacks irises outlined with a white ring in the shape of a teardrop.

The tail is black, and the wings are brownish-black in color. The two sexes are similar in terms of appearance.

The juveniles of black-capped flycatcher birds have a browner head compared to the adult bird. The black-capped flycatcher wingspan is short but proportional with its size.

How cute are they?

Their small size is adorable, and the white ring around their eyes gives an illusion of larger eyes that looks uniquely beautiful from a distance.

How do they communicate?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) call is a whistled kip, and their song is a loud keer- keer.

How big is a black-capped flycatcher?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) is 4.5 in (11.5 cm) long. It is the same size as a least flycatcher and three times the size of a bee hummingbird.

How fast can a black-capped flycatcher fly?

The black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) can fly very fast since it has to prey on small insects, which also fly very fast like gnats. Fast flying is shared among all flycatcher species. Their high flight speed also makes it hard to click their photos mid-flight.

How much does a black-capped flycatcher weigh?

The Empidonax atriceps (black-capped flycatcher) is very lightweight at 0.3 oz (9 g). This species of flycatcher weighs a quarter of what a scissor-tailed flycatcher weighs.

What are the male and female names of the species?

There are no specific names to refer to male and female Empidonax atriceps (black-capped flycatcher).

What would you call a baby black-capped flycatcher?

There is no specific name that is used for this flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) black-capped species. The young ones are simply referred to as chicks or juveniles.

What do they eat?

The flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) black-capped species, as the name may suggest, eats insects. The black-capped flycatcher diet consists of small insects in open mountain forest regions like gnats, small beetles, moths.

This flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) black-capped species, which is endemic to Costa Rica and western Panamas, catches insects in flight after a thorough search from an open branch on a high tree.

Are they poisonous?

No, Empidonax atriceps (black-capped flycatcher) are not poisonous.

Would they make a good pet?

No, they would not make for good pets. Despite their small size, which is favorable in the cagebird business, these birds belong in the open wild and should be left to their own devices in their natural habitat. Their population is small, to begin with, and does not need our intervention.

Did you know...

The scientific name Empidonax atriceps is a Latin name. Empidonax means 'gnat-lord,' and atriceps means 'black-capped'. Salvin authored its name in 1870.

Empidonax atriceps, a small bird of Tyrannidae, Empidonax, and Passeriformes, family, genus, and order, respectively, is a species belonging to the tyrant flycatcher family, which has more than 400 species. As the name suggests, these birds are primarily insectivorous and are found all over North and South America.

Empidonax atriceps is a resident, non-migratory bird and hence does not have a black capped flycatcher migration pattern or route. One of the migratory flycatchers is the great crested flycatcher.

Some birds which are very similar to black-capped flycatchers are dusky capped flycatcher and black phoebe, both of which are from the tyrant flycatcher family. These birds are similar in terms of native land, appearance, diet and behaviour.

What's the difference between a black-capped flycatcher and black phoebe?

The black phoebe is also a species belonging to the tyrant flycatcher family. It is commonly found near low altitude water bodies in North, Central, and South America.

Its plumage is black and white. It is friendly with humans, and its nest is often made with artificial man-made items. While it is an insectivore like the black-capped flycatcher, it dives into the water to catch small fish.

Are black-capped flycatchers endangered?

No, the black-capped flycatcher (Empidonax atriceps) is not endangered. It is categorized as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these Amazon parrot facts and mountain chickadee facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable black-capped flycatcher coloring pages.