the vermilion flycatcher (pyrocephalus rubinus) is a small passerine bird in the tyrannidae , or tyrant flycatcher family .
most flycatchers are rather drab , but the vermilion flycatcher is a striking exception .
it is a favourite with birders , but is not generally kept in aviculture , as the males tend to lose their bright red colouration when in captivity .
when pieter boddaert first described the vermilion flycatcher in 1783, from a specimen collected in tef , brazil , he assigned it to the genus muscicapa , believing it to be related to the many old world flycatchers already belonging to that genus .
by the 1830s , however , taxonomists realized that old world and new world flycatchers were not closely related , and the new world birds were moved from their former genera .
in 1839, john gould created the current genus pyrocephalus for the vermilion flycatcher .
while it is considered a monotypic genus by many authorities , some taxonomists believe that one or both of the vermilion flycatcher subspecies found on the galpagos islands merit species status .
there are 12 widely recognized subspecies , which differ primarily in the color and saturation of the male's plumage and the color and amount of streaking of the female's .
the boundaries between some of the subspecies are not well defined:the vermilion flycatcher is a small bird , measuring 1314 cm (5.15.5 in) in length , with a mass between 11 and 14 g (0.39 and 0.49 oz) .
it strongly dimorphic; males are bright red , with dark brown plumage .
females have a peach-colored belly with a dark gray upperside , and are similar to say's phoebe .
vermilion flycatchers generally prefer somewhat open areas , and are found in trees or shrubs in savannah , scrub , agricultural areas , riparian woodlands , and desert as well , but usually near water .
their range includes almost all of mexico; it extends north into the southwestern united states , and south to scattered portions of central america , parts of northwestern and central south america , and on southwards to central argentina .
they are also found in the galpagos islands .
it has ranged as far north as canada .
the flycatchers feed mostly on insects such as flies , grasshoppers and beetles .
these are usually taken in mid-air , after a short sally flight from a perch .
it is an opportunistic feeder , and has been observed eating small fish .
the vermilion flycatcher's nest is a shallow cup made of small twigs and soft materials , lined with hair; the nest's rim is often covered with lichen .
typically located within 6 ft (1.8 m) of the ground , the nest is placed in the horizontal fork of a tree branch .
they lay two or three whitish eggs in a nest made of twigs , stems and roots , and lined with hair .
the eggs are incubated for around two weeks by the female and the young are ready to leave the nest 15 days after hatching .
because of its enormous range and sizable populationestimated as ranging between 5,000,000 and 50,000,000 individualsthe vermilion flycatcher is listed as a species of least concern by the international union for the conservation of nature , despite the fact that its overall numbers are declining .
some of its subspecies , however , are known to be in trouble .
p .
r .
dubius , which was once reportedly common on san cristbal , has not been recorded from that island since the mid-1980s , and is thought to be extinct .
the other galpagos subspecies , p .
r .
nanus , is also declining precipitously , principally as a result of the spread of the nonnative smooth-billed ani across the archipelago .
the ani is known to be predatory , sometimes killing (though apparently not eating) nestling flycatchers .
