Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet

Overview

The yellow-crowned tyrannulet (Tyrannulus elatus) is a small bird in the tyrant flycatcher family, notable for being the only member of its genus. It is a year-round resident throughout its range in Central and South America, classified as Least Concern by the IUCN with an estimated population of 50 million mature individuals.

Identification

• Size: 10 to 11 cm long and weighing 6.5 to 8 g.
• Plumage: Males have a slate-gray to dark brown or blackish crown with a bright yellow to orange-yellow central stripe, bright olive-green nape and back, and pale to medium yellow underparts with an olive wash on the breast. Females are smaller with paler upperparts and crown stripes.
• Markings: Both sexes possess a grayish supercilium, a thin dark eye-line, dusky wings with two white to yellowish-white bars, and a dusky olive tail.
• Song: A 2-noted, clear, plaintive 'wih-weér' (or 'free beer') where the second note is higher, shorter, and stressed.

Habitat

Found in lowlands and foothills up to 1,200 m, primarily in humid evergreen forest, especially edges and shrubby openings, though also in secondary forest, plantations, and suburban parks. Its distribution is disjunct, covering parts of Costa Rica, Panama, and mainland South America, excluding Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

Diet

Feeds on insects and small fruits, with a preference for mistletoe berries. It forages singly or in pairs within the forest canopy, taking prey by gleaning while perched or briefly hovering, and rarely joins mixed-species flocks.

Did you know?

The nest, typically placed 8 to 20 m above the ground, is constructed as a shallow cup of thin twigs and fine plant fibres, some of which are left dangling below the structure. The clutch consists of only one or two eggs, and apparently only the female incubates them.