Olive-sided Flycatcher
(Contopus cooperi)

Overview

Summary

© Ralph Hocken
For additional photos and vocalizations, visit Dendroica. (Link opens in a new window.)

The Breeding Bird Survey indicates that the Olive-sided Flycatcher has experienced widespread and consistent decreases in Canada since about 1970, resulting in a loss of almost 75% of the breeding population. Declines are so persistent that this once familiar species was classified as Threatened by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada in 2007 (COSEWIC 2007d). Causes of the declines are unknown, although habitat alteration and loss on both the breeding and wintering grounds may pose a serious threat (Altman and Sallabanks 2000). This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.

Designations

Population status

Population estimate

Distribution maps

• BirdLife International / NatureServe
• Breeding Bird Survey (BBS): Relative Abundance and Breeding Distribution (1993-2012)

Migration strategy, occurrence

Responsibility for conservation of world population

Conservation and management

The causes of population declines in the Olive-sided Flycatcher are unclear but are most likely related to habitat changes. Recent studies suggest that reproductive success in harvested stands is less than in stands that have regenerated following a fire (COSEWIC 2007d). Habitat alteration and loss on its wintering grounds may also pose serious threats (Altman and Sallabanks 2012, COSEWIC 2007d). However, precise estimates of changes to winter habitat are not available, and there are no data linking declines in particular breeding locations to specific wintering populations. Changes in insect populations either on breeding or wintering grounds or during migration may also be important (Blancher et al. 2009).  For information on the legal status of this species under the Species at Risk Act (SARA) and to view available recovery documents, see the SARA Registry.

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

• conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
• stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
• management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
• other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

References

• Altman, B. and R. Sallabanks. 2000. Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Altman, B. and R. Sallabanks. 2000. Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)
• Altman, B. and R. Sallabanks. 2012. Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Altman, B. and R. Sallabanks. 2012. Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)
• Blancher, P.J., R.D. Phoenix, D.S. Badzinski, M.D. Cadman, T.L. Crewe, C.M. Downes, D. Fillman, C.M. Francis, J. Hughes, D.J.T. Hussell, D. Lepage, J.D. McCracken, D.K. McNicol, B.A. Pond, R.K. Ross, R. Russell, L.A. Venier and R.C. Weeber. 2009. Population trend status of Ontario’s forest birds. The Forestry Chronicle 85(2):184-201.
• COSEWIC. 2007d. COSEWIC Assessment and Status Report on the Olive-sided Flycatcher Contopus cooperi in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vii + 25 pp. COSEWIC. 2007d. COSEWIC Assessment and Status Report on the Olive-sided Flycatcher Contopus cooperi in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vii + 25 pp. (Link)