Common tody-flycatcher

Todirostrum cinereum

Common name:

common tody-flycatcher (en); ferreirinho-relógio (pt); todirostre familier (fr); titirijí común (es); graugelb-todityrann (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Tyrannidae

Range:

These birds are found from southern Mexico to north-western Peru, eastern Bolivia and southern Brazil.

Size:

This tinny tyrant flycatcher is 9,5-11 cm long and weighs 6,5-7 g.

Habitat:

The common tody-flycatcher is mostly found in open habitats, namely gardens, shady plantations, second growth and the edges and clearings of forest. It avoids the dense interior of mature woodland and also arid areas. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.500 m.

Diet:

This active insectivores mostly hunts flies and butterflies, as well as other invertebrates taken from the vegetation.

Breeding:

The common tody-flycatcher breeds in July-November. Both male and female build a pouch nest with a visored side entrance, which is suspended from a thin branch or vine 1-5 m high in a tree. There the female lays 1-3 white eggs which she incubates alone for 15-16 days. The chicks fledge 16-17 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

This species has an extremely large breeding range and a global population of 5-50 million individuals. This species benefits from deforestation and is therefore suspected to be increasing as a result of large scale habitat changes within its range.