#ABArare – Dusky Flycatcher – Georgia

On October 1, banders led by Evan Pitman working at the Jekyll Island Banding Station, Glynn, Georgia, extracted a strange Empid from their nets.  Measurements confirmed the bird as a Dusky Flycatcher, Empidonax oberholseri.  Pending acceptance, this is a first state record for Georgia. 

Photo by Charlie Muise, used with permission

The bird was not seen before or after it was banded, but may still be in the area. The banding station is located on the south end of the island, near the area known as South Beach.  The public is welcome to observe the operations and bird the vicinity. 

The closest metro area to Jekyll Island is Jacksonville, Florida,approximately an hour and half to the south.  From Jacksonville, travel north on I-95 before exiting on Jekyll Island Rd/Ocean Hwy just before the town of Brunswick.  Once on the island turn south on Riverview Drive to the South Beach area.

Dusky Flycatcher is a common Empid of the western interior of the continent, breeding from British Columbia to northern Arizona and New Mexico.  It has some history of vagrancy to the east, with records in Ontario (1993), Illinois (2001), Delaware (2002) and Alabama (2009).  The true nature of the species occurance east of its range is no doubt complicated by the fact that the species very closely resembles many other Empidonax species. 

Jekyll Island Banding Station is Georgia's oldest continuously operating banding station. 

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Nate Swick

Nate Swick is the editor of the American Birding Association Blog. A long-time member of the bird blogosphere, Nate has been writing about birds and birding at The Drinking Bird since 2007, but can also be found writing regularly at 10,000 Birds. In the non-digital world, he's an environmental educator and interpretive naturalist. He is also the author of Birding for the Curious. Nate lives in Greensboro, North Carolina, with his wife, Danielle, and two young children, who are not yet aware that they are being groomed to be birders.

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