Great Crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus)

County List:

Rule:

Forested or Mixed Forested/Nonforested Landscapes

      (Northern Hardwoods (Pole or Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Mixed Northern Hardwoods (Pole or Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Swamp Hardwoods (Pole or Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Bottomland Hardwoods (Pole or Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
   containing:
      (Living Cavity Tree or Snags)

Habitat List:

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Literature:

Habitat: The Great Crested Flycatcher is a bird of the deciduous forests. Although it occurs in deep forest, it also tolerates open woodland, such as the old orchards that figure prominently in the New England-biased ornithological writings of earlier times. Avoidance of conifer forest is obvious in the Atlas Habitat Survey; of the total of 546 bird observations in conifer forest in the state, only 3 (0.5%) were of this species. By contrast 100 (3.6%) of 2,811 deciduous forest observations were Great Crested Flycatchers. They do not seem to avoid mixed forest, so it is evidently something associated with the absence of hardwoods, rather than the presence of conifers, that is crucial. Mesic to wet forests seem to be favored over dry, especially northward.

One factor by which conifer forests may be defective is nest sites. Great Crested Flycatchers generally nest in natural cavities in live trees and woodpecker holes in dead trees. Height seems inconsequential. Nests have also been built in such sites as mailboxes and gutters. Purple martin and other nest boxes are sometimes used. The cavity is filled as much as necessary to bring the nest to within about 15 cm of the cavity entrance.

Habitat: Breeding: Edges of deciduous or mixed woodlands, swamps, old orchards (with dead limbs or trees), woodland clearings, sometimes along sides of ravines, deep forests. Prefers forests with mature trees but also uses second-growth woodlands.

Special Habitat Requirements: Cavity for nesting (middle-aged to mature trees), deciduous forest, edge.

Habitat: Woodlands, groves. Breeds mainly in deciduous forest or mixed forest, but avoids pure stands of conifers. May be found in either continuous deep forest or in more open wooded areas, around edges of clearings or abandoned orchards.

Diet: Mostly insects. Feeds on a wide variety of insects, including caterpillars, moths, butterflies, katydids, tree crickets, beetles, true bugs, and others. Also eats spiders and sometimes small lizards, and regularly eats fruits and berries.

Nest: Site is usually in hole in tree, either natural cavity or old woodpecker hole, usually 20-50 feet above the ground. Sometimes nests in artificial sites such as birdhouses, drainpipes, or hollow fence-posts. Both sexes help build nest; in deep cavities, they may carry large amounts of material, bringing the nest level up close to the entrance. Nest foundation is made of grass, weeds, strips of barks, rootlets, feathers, or other debris. Usually includes a piece of snakeskin in lining (sometimes a piece of clear plastic instead).