English           -          Cliff Flycatcher

Portugueses  -          Gibão-de-couro

Latin               -           Hirundinea ferruginea.

I would have loved to source more detailed information about the Cliff Flycatcher but couldn’t find too much information about this bird.

The Cliff Flycatcher is a smallish passerine bird of the Tyrannidae family. The bird is found in Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela south along the Andes to northern Argentina, and also is found on the east cost of Brazil. It prefers cliffs, rocky outcrops, canyon walls and steep banks. It has adapted well to human altered environments. In São Paulo these birds nest on apartment blocks and high-rise buildings. 

The Cliff Flycatcher has blackish-brown upper-parts, mottled white cheeks and a cinnamon coloured throat and underparts. Reminiscent of a swallow in both its shape and manner of flight. It’s around 18cm in length and weighs around 21g. It frequently gives a high-pitched call or single or repeated notes described as “wheeeyp”.

The Cliff flycatcher builds a nest out of roots and straw held together with a salivary mucous adhesive. The eggs are white with rust coloured spots on them. The female lays 2-3 eggs. Southern breeding birds migrate north during the austral winter.

The Cliff Flycatcher feeds on insects and catches them by making long powerful aerial sortie from a perch on rocky outcrops, cliff face or overhanging branch. 

The Cliff Flycatcher has a large population with some reports of a growing population. It also has a large range, therefore it is regarded as a species “of least concern”.

Photo # 1 was taken at Pedra Azul - Espirito Santo

Photo # 2 is of a juvenile Cliff Flycatcher and was taken at Marechal Floriano  - Espirito Santo