White-ringed Flycatcher

Overview

The white-ringed flycatcher (Conopias albovittatus) is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae. It inhabits the canopy of tropical evergreen forests in Central and South America. The species is assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN, with a population estimated at over 50,000 mature individuals.

Identification

• Measures 15 to 16.5 cm in length and weighs approximately 24 g, with a longish black bill and blackish legs.
• Features a black to dark sooty brownish crown and face with a mostly hidden lemon-yellow to canary-yellow patch in the centre of the crown.
• Displays a prominent white supercilium that begins at the forehead, widens behind the eye, and wraps almost all the way around the nape.
• Upperparts are grayish olive-green to dark olive, while the underparts are bright canary-yellow with a white chin and throat.

Habitat

Found in a disjunct range across Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, and Ecuador. It primarily inhabits the canopy and edges of tropical evergreen forest, occasionally utilising taller trees in clearings, open areas, and along watercourses. Elevation ranges vary by location, reaching up to 1,350 m in Panama and 900 m in Colombia.

Diet

Feeds primarily on insects and spiders, supplemented by berries. Forages singly, in pairs, or in small family groups, and occasionally joins mixed-species feeding flocks. It perches high in the canopy, often at the very top of a tree, and captures prey by sallies to snatch it from foliage.

Did you know?

The bird's call is extremely distinctive, commencing with a long note followed by rapid, rattling or whirring repetitive trills described as 'tre-r-r-r-r' and 'kree-ee-ee-eer'. Its taxonomic history is equally complex, having been originally described as Pitangus albovittatus before the genus Coryphotriccus was erected for it in 1906, and later merged into Conopias.