The Vermilion Flycatcher 
AS BEAUTIFUL 
as heart’s desire is this 
brilliant child of the 
tropics. By the flawless 
scarlet of his ample crest 
and entire underparts we 
may appraise the 
meagerness of color with 
which nature has en¬ 
dowed most of our 
northern species. Only 
the Western Tanager at 
his best has anything 
half so wonderful in 
head dress—he and the 
Arizona Cardinal, 
which, unlike the Ver¬ 
milion Flycatcher, does 
not attain our eastern 
borders. The occur- 
rence of the Ver¬ 
milion upon the Pacific 
slope of southern Cali¬ 
fornia is doubly impres¬ 
sive, because it is only 
in fall or winter that 
the bird displays itself. 
Normally confined in 
summer to the mesquite 
area of the Colorado 
D esert, the Imperial 
Valley, and the borders of the Colorado River, the birds retire irregularly, 
but not fully, in winter. Some may go south, others south and east, 
but a few at least venture into San Diego and Los Angeles counties; 
and they have been seen on two or three occasions as far west as Santa 
Barbara. 
The bird is apt to be a little shy anywhere within our borders, as 
though conscious that its brilliance is attracting too much attention; 
but in the mesquite forests of, say, the Santa Cruz River in Arizona, 
where the bird abounds, its movements are as unrestrained as those of 
Black Phoebes or Gnatcatchers. Although dependent more or less upon 
the presence of water, the bird may be seen along hedge-rows or about 
Taken in Arizona 
Photo by the Author 
“CHOOSES AN EXPOSED SITUATION” 
