Alder Flycatcher
(Empidonax alnorum)

Overview

Summary

© Jukka Jantunen (flickr.com/photos/jukka_jantunen)
For additional photos and vocalizations, visit Dendroica. (Link opens in a new window.)

The Alder Flycatcher is an abundant and widespread breeding species in Canada, ranging from the Yukon Territory to Newfoundland and Labrador. The Breeding Bird Survey indicates that the Canadian population has shown a moderate decrease since 1970, although this result is heavily influenced by the apparent large decline in only one region. The species is likely more common today than historically due to the opening up of suitable upland habitats by forestry and agriculture during the settlement period (Lowther 1999). Currently, threats on the breeding grounds appear to be minimal. 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

Currently, the Alder Flycatcher appears to be free of significant threats because of its overall population stability and absence of known issues on either the breeding or wintering grounds. Apparent large population declines in the Boreal Taiga Plains Bird Conservation Region are a possible cause for concern. However, these may be an artefact of the relatively sparse coverage by the Breeding Bird Survey in that region. The non-breeding population ecology of this species is poorly understood, partly because the species is difficult to distinguish from the Willow Flycatcher on the wintering grounds in northern South America (Lowther 1999).

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

• Lowther, P.E. 1999. Alder Flycatcher (Empidonax alnorum), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Lowther, P.E. 1999. Alder Flycatcher (Empidonax alnorum), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)