Roadless Areas
Home/Species/ Gray Flycatcher

Empidonax wrightii

Baird, 1858

Gray Flycatcher

G5Secure Found in 66 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.100653
Element CodeABPAE33100
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyTyrannidae
GenusEmpidonax
Other Common Names
gray flycatcher (EN) Mosquero Gris (ES) Moucherolle gris (FR)
Concept Reference
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
Taxonomic Comments
Formerly known as E. griseus. E. oberholseri was formerly known as E. wrightii; all records of E. wrightii prior to 1939 and most prior to 1957 pertain to E. oberholseri (AOU 1983). Banks and Browning (1995) rejected Oberholser's (1974) use of the name E. obscurus for this species.
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2016-04-07
Change Date1996-12-02
Range Extent Comments
BREEDING: extreme southern British Columbia (Cannings 1992) and south-central Idaho south to southern California, southern Nevada, central Arizona, south-central New Mexico, and locally western Texas (Terres 1980, AOU 1983). NON-BREEDING: southern California, central Arizona, south to Baja California and south-central mainland of Mexico (Terres 1980).
Threat Impact Comments
Reasons for decline of wintering birds in southern California unknown. Would be vulnerable to land clearing, but generally found in very arid environments that are not usually converted to agriculture (USDA Forest Service 1994). Clearing of pinyon-juniper for mining of coal and oil shale deposits or in favor of grassland for livestock grazing, or widespread harvesting could be detrimental (O'Meara et al. 1981, cited in Sterling 1999). Levels of predation or brood parasitism unknown. Chipmunks and jays have been observed destroying nests. Other mortality factors unknown.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

BREEDING: Arid woodland and brushy areas (AOU 1998). Most commonly associated with pinyon-juniper woodland. In Wyoming, strongly associated with the presence of pinyon pine and higher than expected juniper overstory cover (Pavlacky and Anderson 2001). In western Great Basin, nests in tall big sagebrush shrublands (Ryser 1985). Less frequently found in open ponderosa pine or pine-oak woodland. In the last three decades has expanded its range northward into Washington and British Columbia, where it uses open stands of small to medium (up to 15 m high) ponderosa pines exclusively; these stands usually have a scattered shrub or young pine understory (Cannings 1992). Usually builds nest in fork or branch of a shrub or juniper (Ehrlich et al. 1988). NON-BREEDING: In migration and winter also in arid scrub, riparian woodland, and mesquite (AOU 1998). See also Sterling (1999).

Ecology

A breeding population of approximately 25 pairs per 100 hectares has been reported in Oregon (Bureau of Land Management, no date).

Reproduction

Clutch size is three to four. Incubation by female lasts 14 days. Nestlings are altricial and downy, tended by both parents, leave nest in 16 days, fed by parents for 14 more days.
Terrestrial Habitats
Woodland - ConiferWoodland - MixedShrubland/chaparralDesert
Palustrine Habitats
Riparian
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN2B
ProvinceRankNative
British ColumbiaS2BYes
United StatesN5B
ProvinceRankNative
Navajo NationS4BYes
MontanaS3BYes
ArizonaS3Yes
UtahS4BYes
NevadaS5BYes
TexasS3BYes
CaliforniaSNRYes
New MexicoS3B,S5NYes
WashingtonS2BYes
IdahoS4BYes
ColoradoS5BYes
OregonS4Yes
WyomingS4B,S4NYes
Roadless Areas (66)
Arizona (15)
AreaForestAcres
Butterfly Roadless AreaCoronado National Forest42,296
Catalina St. Pk. Roadless AreaCoronado National Forest951
GaliuroCoronado National Forest28,333
GoldfieldTonto National Forest15,257
HellsgateTonto National Forest6,171
Lime CreekTonto National Forest42,568
Middle Romero WSRCoronado National Forest60
Mitchell PeakApache-Sitgreaves National Forests35,398
Oracle RoadlessCoronado National Forest22,365
PinalenoCoronado National Forest130,920
PipestemApache-Sitgreaves National Forests34,598
Santa TeresaCoronado National Forest8,929
TumacacoriCoronado National Forest44,594
Upper Romero WsrCoronado National Forest150
WhetstoneCoronado National Forest20,728
California (26)
AreaForestAcres
AntimonyLos Padres National Forest40,911
Benton RangeInyo National Forest9,637
Birch CreekInyo National Forest28,816
Black CanyonInyo National Forest32,421
Boundary Peak (CA)Inyo National Forest210,884
Coyote NorthInyo National Forest11,932
Deep WellsInyo National Forest7,681
Devil's Gate (CA)Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest9,946
Dexter CanyonInyo National Forest17,053
Excelsior (CA)Inyo National Forest45,607
Glass MountainInyo National Forest52,867
Granite PeakSan Bernardino National Forest450
Horse Mdw.Inyo National Forest5,687
LavasModoc National Forest25,864
Log Cabin SaddlebagInyo National Forest15,165
Magic MountainAngeles National Forest15,542
Mill PeakSan Bernardino National Forest7,884
Mono CratersInyo National Forest7,115
Mt. JacksonHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest20,721
QuatalLos Padres National Forest7,253
Salt CreekAngeles National Forest11,022
San DimasAngeles National Forest7,160
Sawmill - BadlandsLos Padres National Forest51,362
ScodiesSequoia National Forest725
Soldier CanyonInyo National Forest40,589
SugarloafSan Bernardino National Forest8,206
Montana (2)
AreaForestAcres
Mt. Gmt Area HCuster National Forest1,335
Tash PeakBeaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest61,312
Nevada (7)
AreaForestAcres
Angel Peak NorthHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest12,577
Boundary Peak (NV)Inyo National Forest21,851
Pearl PeakHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest71,405
Ruby - Lamoille CynHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest32,771
Ruby - MarshHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest10,164
Snake - Big WashHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest4,146
Snake - ChokecherryHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest30,845
New Mexico (8)
AreaForestAcres
Apache MountainGila National Forest17,506
Contiguous To Black & Aldo Leopold WildernessGila National Forest111,883
Gila BoxGila National Forest23,759
Nichols ReservoirSanta Fe National Forest1,518
Peloncillo (NM)Coronado National Forest43,339
Ryan HillCibola National Forest34,201
South Guadalupe MountainsLincoln National Forest20,930
West Face Sacramento MountainsLincoln National Forest41,176
Utah (6)
AreaForestAcres
Clarkston Mtn.Caribou National Forest7,099
CottonwoodDixie National Forest6,754
Lookout PeakFishlake National Forest9,195
Mahogany RangeWasatch-Cache National Forest11,409
Mt. Logan SouthWasatch-Cache National Forest17,014
WellsvilleWasatch-Cache National Forest1,717
Washington (1)
AreaForestAcres
Pasayten RimOkanogan National Forest17,074
Wyoming (1)
AreaForestAcres
Middle ForkShoshone National Forest51,772
References (30)
  1. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
  2. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in <i>The Auk</i>]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
  3. Balda, R. P., and G. C. Bateman. 1971. Flocking and annual cycle of the piñon jay, <i>Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus</i>. Condor 73:287-302.
  4. Banks, R. C., and M. R. Browning. 1995. Comments on the status of revived old names for some North American birds. Auk 112:633-648.
  5. BirdLife International. 2004b. Threatened birds of the world 2004. CD ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
  6. Bureau of Land Management. Life History Summaries.
  7. Cannings, R. J. 1992. Status report on the Gray Flycatcher EMPIDONAX WRIGHTII in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). 11 pp.
  8. Ehrlich, P. R., D. S. Dobkin, and D. Wheye. 1988. The birder's handbook: a field guide to the natural history of North American birds. Simon and Shuster, Inc., New York. xxx + 785 pp.
  9. Harrison, C. 1978. A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of North American Birds. Collins, Cleveland, Ohio.
  10. Horn, H. S. 1968. The adaptive significance of colonial nesting in the Brewer's Blackbird. Ecology 49:682-694.
  11. Ligon, J. D. 1971. Late summer-autumnal breeding of the piñon jay in New Mexico. Condor 73:147-153.
  12. Moore, W. S., and R. A. Dolbeer. 1989. The use of banding recovery data to estimate dispersal rates and gene flow in avian species: case studies in the Red-winged Blackbird and Common Grackle. Condor 91:242-253.
  13. Oberholser, H.C. 1974. The bird life of Texas. 2 vols. Univ. of Texas Press, Austin.
  14. O'Meara, T., J. Haufler, L. Stelter, and J. Nagy. 1981. Nongame wildlife responses to chaining of Pinyon-Juniper woodlands. Journal of Wildlife Management 45(2):381-389.
  15. Parker III, T. A., D. F. Stotz, and J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1996. Ecological and distributional databases for neotropical birds. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
  16. Pavlacky, D. C., Jr., and S. H. Anderson. 2001. Habitat preferences of pinyon-juniper specialists near the limit of their geographic range. Condor 103:322-331.
  17. Poole, A. F. and F. B. Gill. 1992. The birds of North America. The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. and The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA.
  18. Reynolds, T.D., and C.H. Trost. 1981. Grazing, crested wheatgrass, and bird populations in southeastern Idaho. Northwest Science 5:225-235.
  19. Ryser, F.A. 1985. Birds of the Great Basin a natural history. University of Nevada Press, Reno, NV.
  20. Saab, V.A., C.E. Bock, T.D. Rich, and D.S. Dobkin. 1995. Livestock grazing effects in western North America. Pages 311-353 in T.E. Martin and D.M. Finch, editors. Ecology and management of Neotropical migratory birds. Oxford University Press, New York, NY.
  21. Sauer, J.R., J.E. Hines, G. Gough, I. Thomas, and B.G. Peterjohn. 1997a. The North American Breeding Bird Survey Results and Analysis. Version 96.3. Online. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. Available: http://www.mbr.nbs.gov/bbs/bbs.html.
  22. Sauer, J.R., S. Schwartz, and B. Hoover. 1996. The Christmas Bird Count Home Page. Version 95.1 U.S.G.S. Biological Resource Division, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. Online. Available: http://www.mbr.nbs.gov/bbs/cbc.html.
  23. Sibley, D. A. 2000a. The Sibley guide to birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
  24. Sterling, J.C. 1999. Gray Flycatcher (EMPIDONAX WRIGHTII). In A. Poole and F. Gill, editors, The Birds of North America, No. 458. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 16 pp.
  25. Tarvin, K. A., and G. E. Woolfenden. 1999. Blue Jay (<i>Cyanocitta cristata</i>). No. 469 IN A. Poole and F. Gill, editors. The birds of North America. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 32pp.
  26. Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
  27. Thompson, F. R., III. 1994. Temporal and spatial patterns of breeding brown-headed cowbirds in the midwestern United States. Auk 111:979-990.
  28. U.S. Forest Service (USFS). 1994. Neotropical Migratory Bird Reference Book. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region. 832 pp.
  29. Williams, L. 1952b. Breeding behavior of the Brewer blackbird. Condor 54:3-47.
  30. Willson, M. F. 1966. Breeding ecology of the Yellow-headed Blackbird. Ecological Monographs 36:51-77.