The dusky-chested flycatcher (''Myiozetetes luteiventris'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

in the family

Tyrannidae The tyrant flycatchers (Tyrannidae) comprise a Family (biology), family of passerine birds which is found virtually throughout North America, North and South America. It is the world's largest family of birds, with more than 400 species, and is ...

, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

, and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 30 March 2025. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved 30 March 2025

Taxonomy and systematics

The dusky-chested flycatcher was originally described as ''Elaenia luteiventris''. It was later moved to genus ''Myiozetetes'' but during the twentieth century was treated by some authors in genus '' Tyrannopsis''. By the late 1900s it was again generally recognized in its present genus.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 30 March 2025. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved 30 March 2025 The dusky-chested flycatcher has two subspecies, the

nominate Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list. Political office In th ...

''M. l. luteiventris'' ( Sclater, PL, 1858) and ''M. l. septentrionalis'' (

Blake Blake or Blake's may refer to: People * Blake (given name), a given name of English origin (includes a list of people with the name) * Blake (surname), a surname of English origin (includes a list of people with the name) ** William Blake (1757 ...

, 1961).

Description

The dusky-chested flycatcher is the smallest member of genus ''Myiozetetes''. It is long and weighs about . The sexes have almost the same plumage. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a grayish olive-brown crown and face with a mostly hidden yellow-orange patch in the center of the crown. Females have a smaller patch or none at all. Adults of both sexes have dark olive-brown upperparts. Their wings are dark olive-brown with faint and variable rufous edges on the flight feathers. Their throat is whitish with faint dusky streaks. Their underparts are bright yellow with an olive cast and smudgy dark olive streaks on the upper breast. Subspecies ''M. l. septentrionalis'' has essentially the same plumage with sometimes greener edges on the flight feathers. Both subspecies have a black iris, a stubby black bill, and black legs and feet.Mobley, J. A. (2020). Dusky-chested Flycatcher (''Myiozetetes luteiventris''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.ducfly2.01 retrieved June 22, 2025

Distribution and habitat

The dusky-chested flycatcher has a

disjunct distribution In biology, a taxon with a disjunct distribution is one that has two or more groups that are related but considerably separated from each other geographically. The causes are varied and might demonstrate either the expansion or contraction of a s ...

within the

Amazon Basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributary, tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries ...

. The nominate subspecies has by far the larger range. It is found from the southeastern quadrant of Colombia south through eastern Ecuador and eastern Peru into far northwestern Bolivia and east into southern Venezuela's Amazonas and northern Bolívar states and across Brazil's central Amazon basin to western

Maranhão Maranhão () is a States of Brazil, state in Brazil. Located in the country's Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region, it has a population of about 7 million and an area of and it is divided into 217 municipalities. Clockwise from north, it ...

. Subspecies ''M. l. septentrionalis'' is found across Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and northern Brazil's

Amapá Amapá (; ) is one of the 26 federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil. It is in the North Region, Brazil, North Region of Brazil. It is Federative units of Brazil#List, the second-least populous state and the eighteenth-largest state by area ...

state. The species inhabits the canopy of

evergreen forest An evergreen forest is a forest made up of evergreen trees. They occur across a wide range of climatic zones, and include trees such as conifers and holly in cold climates, eucalyptus, live oak, acacias, magnolia, and banksia in more temperate zo ...

both '' terra firme'' and '' várzea''; shrubby forest edges, clearings, and openings caused by fallen trees; and the edges of rivers and lakes. In elevation it reaches in Colombia, in Ecuador, in Peru, in Venezuela, and in Brazil.

Behavior

Movement

The dusky-chested flycatcher appears to "wander rather widely" and might be a partial migrant.

Feeding

The dusky-chested flycatcher feeds on insects and small fruits. It usually forages in pairs or small family groups though sometimes singly. It perches erect on an exposed branch as high as above the ground. It takes insect prey with short flights to glean or hover-glean it from foliage and only occasionally takes it in mid-air by hawking. It takes fruit also by gleaning from a perch or during a brief hover, but usually at a much lower height. It often feeds with other species in fruiting trees but seldom joins traveling

mixed-species feeding flock A mixed-species feeding flock, also termed a mixed-species foraging flock, mixed hunting party or informally bird wave, is a flock of usually insectivorous birds of different species that join each other and move together while foraging. These ar ...

Breeding

The dusky-chested flycatcher's breeding season has not been determined but includes May in Colombia. Its one known nest was a bulky domed cup with a side entrance, made from grass, and placed about below the top of a tall tree on the edge of the forest. Nothing else is known about the species' breeding biology.

Vocalization

The dusky-chested flycatcher's most common call is "a nasal, cat-like ''meeow'' or softer ''neea''". It makes a "fast nasal ''nyeeuw-nyeeuw, keep-kít'' or ''neea-ne-wít''" when it is excited; sometimes pairs do this in duet. It also makes simple, often repeated, "''keeuw'' or ''nyeeuw''" calls.

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

has assessed the dusky-chested flycatcher as being of Least Concern. It has a large range; its population size is not known and is believed to be stable. No immediate threats have been identified. It is considered uncommon in Colombia, "scarce" in Ecuador, uncommon in Peru, "uncommon and local" in Venezuela, and from "uncommon to frequent" in Brazil. It occurs in several national parks and other protected areas, and "most of its habitat is still in reasonably pristine condition".

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1264762 dusky-chested flycatcher Birds of the Guiana Shield Birds of the Amazon rainforest Birds of the Colombian Amazon Birds of the Venezuelan Amazon Birds of Peruvian Amazonia Birds of the Bolivian Amazon dusky-chested flycatcher dusky-chested flycatcher Taxonomy articles created by Polbot