THE VERMILION FLYCATCHER. 



{Pyrocephalus rubinenus mexicanus.) 



The range of the beautiful VermiUon 

 Flycatcher is a very limited one, extend- 

 ing from Guatemala northward through 

 Mexico and Lower California, southern 

 Texas, southwestern New Mexico, 

 southern and central Arizona, and 

 southern California, to southwestern 

 Utah and possibly southern Nevada. 

 Its breeding range is very nearly the 

 same as its distribution in the United 

 States, but it is not known to nest in 

 southern California. While it has been 

 reported from several localities within 

 the United States, Major Bendire con- 

 sidered that its center of abundance 

 within our borders must be in southern 

 Arizona. In his records of the Birds of 

 Arizona, Mr. W. E. Scott says. "On 

 the foot-hills of the Catalina Mountains 

 it is a common migrant, many breeding 

 at the lower altitudes, and a few rang- 

 ing up to and breeding at an altitude of 

 forty-five hundred feet, which seems to 

 be about the limit of the vertical range." 

 He also found this species to be quite 

 common as a summer resident about 

 Tucson and Florence in Arizona, and a 

 few individuals remain through the 

 winter. 



Major Bendire gives the following 

 description of the nest of the Vermilion 

 Flycatcher: "The nest is a rather frail, 

 shallow and flimsy affair, and is always 

 saddled on a horizontal fork, well out 

 from the trunk of the tree, as is that of 

 the wood pewee. The foundation is com- 

 posed of a thin layer of twigs from two 

 to three inches in length ; the sides are 

 constructed of small weed tops, a spe- 

 cies of Evax, plant fibers, empty co- 

 coons, spider webs, plant down, etc. 

 The whole is rather loosely held to- 

 gether. The inner lining consists most 

 frequently of feathers, sometimes of a 

 little wool, cattle hair, fur, or plant 

 down." While some nests have the rims 

 ornamented with lichens he found that 

 this was rather unusual. The nests are 

 built in various species of trees and 



shrubs at elevations varying from six to 

 fifty feet above the ground. The more 

 common trees selected by the birds are 

 mesquite, oaks, cottonwoods, acacias, 

 and occasionally willows. In Texas, Dr. 

 J. C. Merrill found it nesting in retama 

 or horse bean trees or shrubs at a height 

 of not more than six feet above the 

 ground. The forests and shrubbery bor- 

 dering water courses are the favorite 

 grounds of these flycatchers. While 

 they are, perhaps, more commonly seen 

 in the more level country, they may be 

 found following the canyons in the 

 mountain side up to an altitude of nearly 

 five thousand feet. 



The handsome males of this species 

 have, during the mating season, some 

 very interesting habits. One of these is 

 that of poising in the air, some twenty or 

 more feet above the ground, when they 

 flutter their wings, and elevating the 

 feathers of the body and tail, they re- 

 peatedly utter sharp, loud but somewhat 

 twittering notes and snap their mandi- 

 bles together as if in the act of catching 

 insects. Their food of insects is usually 

 caught while 'on the wing, but they will 

 also, at times, pick up insects while 

 standing on the ground. The male as- 

 sists his mate in the incubation of the 

 eggs, which lasts through a period of 

 about twelve days. Major Bendire be- 

 lieved that two broods were occasionally 

 raised in a season. He says: "On June 

 6 I found a nest of the Vermilion Fly- 

 catcher in a small grove of cottonwood 

 trees, with no other shrubbery nearer 

 than six hundred yards ; it was placed 

 on a horizontal fork of one of these 

 trees, about twenty feet from the 

 ground, and contained three fresh eggs ; 

 close by, the male was feeding a full- 

 grown young bird; no other pair ap- 

 peared to occupy this grove, and it 

 seemed very probable that it belonged to 

 these birds. The fact that I also found 

 fresh eggs as late as July i6 further 

 strengthens this supposition." 



