> ** Steve M. asked:
> First of all, I am surprised you are hearing anything from this bird if it is
> an empid. Most empids clam up tighter than a drum during migration. However,
> as always, there are exceptions to the rule.

And this one was definitely making lots of noise. It spent most of the
past two days calling from five trees around my apartment. Unfortunately,
the only look I got that was near it was the one where I got the details I
listed. All the others it was high enough in a tree where I could see it,
but not well, and certainly not close enough for my piddly little disposable
camera.

> As for vocalizations, this changes consistently during the nesting season. For
> the first couple of weeks after the males arrive, they spend a lot of time
> atop the pines spouting off the territorial song -- che-LEK' -- which sounds
> like a Least Flycatcher on muscle relaxers. Not the machine-gun repetition of
> a Least with notes fairly well-spaced. Pretty easy to remember once heard a
> few times. Once the female arrives and the territories have been carved up
> (the species is loosely colonial in c. B.C. with several pairs nesting in
> relatively close proximity) the frequency of the che-LEK call drops off and
> you start hearing the pair's contact call, a mellow, almost melancholy
> chu-WEE'. This is also used as an alarm call. They have the usual assortment
> of what I call "gargle" calls which all empids have in their repertoire. These
> are used for various things like nest-tending changes, food passoffs, etc.,
> and occasional dustups with neighboring birds. Only once have I heard a bird
> give a sneezy CHEW!

Sounds neat! If it was the YBF, then the only call I was hearing was the
che-lek, and he/she was making it pretty constantly. Since yesterday
afternoon Ihave not heard it any more.

> As for plumage, the adult Yellow-bellieds molt into new feathers on their
> wintering grounds in C. America. By the end of July, they are pretty ratty
> looking and colors are much faded from early June when they arrive. Only birds
> of the year would have immaculate plumage in August. They are probably the
> easiest of all the empids to identify in fresh plumage. Salient points are:

Definitely didn't look immaculate. 8-)

> - bright yellowish-orange lower mandible; stands out like a sore thumb.

Didn't see this, but it was a very shaded tree, so it may not have been
standing out as much.

> - blackish upper wing coverts with contrasting yellowish edges and tips,
> the tipping forming two strong wingbars.

Looked more grayish, but the description definitely fits.

> - overall color of the upperparts is a moss-green, much greener than any of
> our other empids (only Acadian is greener but we don't get them here).

Again, shaded, so it looked more gray.

> - underparts have a definite yellow wash, strongest on the breast.

It looked yesllowish, but in the shade wasn't "sharp"

> - eyering is strong and yellowish-white, usually evenly encircling the eye.

Unfortunately, it was a feature I didn't even look for.

> - primary extension not all that long.

Also fits what I saw.

> Faded adults have all colors muted and the edging and tipping on the wing
> coverts disappears as the feathers fray so the wingbars are not as noticeable.
> One of the most noticeable characteristics of this species is its
> <anthropomorphic warning on> tameness. The little suckers seem not to care too
> much if a human is around their territory and often afford killer looks with
> little effort.

This bird definitely didn't mind me being close, (about 10-15') but would
frequently hop to a branch on the other side of the tree, forcing me to
move.

> Was your bird a Yellow-bellied? Well, I'm afraid there is no way we can tell
> for sure from your description. Please, if you have a camera, search it out

Fair enough.

> tomorrow if it is still around and take some pictures. See if there are some

Yep, tried to yesterday, but it was too high for my camera. Hopefully I'll
get lucky and it'll come back or another will come through, though I'm
afraid it may have moved on and might have been out of range.

> other birders familiar with empids in your area who could come have a look at
> it. Fall empids are one of the toughest clans to successfully ID. Many should
> be left as just "empid sp.".

He, fair enough. Thanks Jack!

Steve Mansfield steve at nwnet.net
NorthWestNet Network Engineer 425-649-7467