A slim, small flycatcher with a fairly long, narrow bill compared to other Empidonax. The wings are short, and the primary feathers do not extend far beyond the tertials (this is often called “short primary projection”). This also makes the tail look rather long.
Relative Size
Larger than a Yellow-rumped Warbler, slightly smaller than a Western Wood-Pewee.
Grayish above, whitish below, with a thin, pale eyering. Darker wings and tail with two grayish wingbars. The bill is mostly pinkish or yellowish below, usually with a blackish tip.
Nests in mature and old-growth sagebrush, and in foothills and mountains with open pine, juniper, cedar, fir, and oak woodlands with brushy undergrowth. Migrates through many habitats but often detected in stream corridors with willow or cottonwood. Winters in similar habitats and also arid thorn forest and scrub.
sparrow-sized or smaller
