A first sighting of the Collared Flycatcher - Ficedula albicollis - in Ireland.

Collared Flycatcher

The Collared Flycatcher, Ficedula albicollis, breeds in southeast Europe and southwest Asia and is migratory, wintering in sub Sahara Africa. A rare summer visitor to Southern Africa. It is a rare vagrant in western Europe. Habitat is deciduous woodlands, parks and gardens.

Description

The breeding male is a small, pied bird, with a glossy black head, back, tail and upperwing, a grey rump, and a white forehead, throat and underparts. The legs and beak are black. Non-breeding males, females and juveniles are a pale brown.

Call

Drawn-out “seep” or soft “whit-whit-whit”. Alarm call a hard “pik”.

Food

An aerial insectivore, flying out of a perch in a tree to catch insects in flight. They also hunt caterpillars amongst the oak foliage, and will also eat berries.

Breeding

They build an open nest in a tree hole, or man-made nest-boxes. Normally 5-7 brown eggs are laid.

Conservation Status – Least concern

In Europe, trends since 1982 show that populations have undergone a moderate increase. Not threatened.

Birdwatching

Ask Aves Birding Tours/Safaris/Adventures to create a tour for you to see these interesting Flycatchers, in Italy or south eastern Europe.