Fork-tailed Flycatcher Sighting

Fork-tailed Flycatcher Sighting

By Andy Bankert

On July 30 many people set out to see their first Fork-tailed Flycatcher in Florida, ABA area, or just their first one ever. I was one of the first to arrive after the first showing at 7:30 a.m., missing the bird by 10 minutes, but I had time to spend and was going to wait for the bird to come out. For 10 hours the group kept growing and exchanging stories. Scopes were set up at all of the bird’s favorite perches. Around 5:45 p.m. the Fork-tailed Flycatcher sat up in a tree and allowed the whole crowd to see it for about a minute. After talking to people at the complex where the bird was they let us get a little closer, and for 20 minutes we watched it feed and get chased around by the territorial Eastern Kingbirds that had a nest in the area.

While waiting, the group saw several other interesting birds. A Gray Kingbird made a short appearance. Monk and Black-hooded Parakeets were studied as they flew around us. Within a 15 minute drive was the resident Hermann’s Gull and Long-billed Curlew. The group consisted of ABA listers approaching 800, to Florida listers well over 400, to local people just getting started in birding. This Fork-tailed Flycatcher was the 377th species seen in Pinellas County. It was not the only first county record in the month of July since Pinellas had its first Curlew Sand-piper this July also.

Fork-tailed Flycatchers are usually found in South and Central America. Because the ones in South America are migratory, that is where this bird was believed to have come from. Birds showing up in Florida have usually stayed for only one day, but the last two, Viera and St. Petersburg stayed for three and 11 days. In 2000 there were four sightings of Fork-tailed Flycatchers in Florida, including the bird at Viera. The record for a Fork-tailed Flycatcher staying in the United States is around two months in New England.