Western Wood-Pewee
contopus sordidulus
The Western Wood-Pewee is a flycatcher that breeds in the western United States, Mexico and Central America, usually preferring forest areas. The species winters in Costa Rica and further south into South America. The photograph on the left was taken in Mendecino, CA on June 18, 2014. It shows the dusky vest around a whitish breast and light throat as well as the smudgy undertail coverts. The right photograph shows the brownish-gray back coloration and the pale gray wing-bars (absent in the slightly larger Olive-Sided Flycatcher); it was taken at the upper San Leandro Reservoir in Moraga, CA (EBMUD Valle Vista Staging Area, permit required). (Click on images to see enlarged versions.)