While out birding with my friend Eric in Toronto, Eric mentioned that a Variegated Flycatcher (Empidonomus varius) had recently been spotted in the Whitby area. Not knowing anything about Variegated Flycatchers I didn't think much of it, until I got home and researched the species. The Variegated Flycatcher is a species of bird native to Argentina where it lives in grassland, prairie and pentanal habitat. This species is split up into two subspecies; Empidonomus varius varius and Empidonomus varius rufinus. While the rufinus subspecies is non-migratory, the nominate varius subspecies migrates with the seasons like birds in the northern hemisphere. During fall (spring in the northern hemisphere), these flycatchers fly from their home in Argentina to Colombia and Venezuela. Come spring (fall in the northern hemisphere), these birds migrate back south to Argentina to breed. Every so often one gets lost and ends up flying north instead where it is introduced the North American winters. Several observations of these birds exist in the United States although the only other Canadian observation was in 1993 where one individual was spotted on the Toronto Islands. Being the first instance of this species making their way to Ontario within my lifetime, I had to see it while I could.
Eric and myself headed east to where the flycatcher was last spotted along the Brooklin Lions Wilderness Trail in Brooklin, Ontario. The parking lot was almost full which we hoped was a good sign. As we walked down the trail heading south, we came across a number of other birders looking for the flycatcher. Soon, one got the word that it had been spotted again further down and everyone rushed over. The Variegated Flycatcher was deep in the thicket but soon made an appearance on the trail edge, as he did there was a cacophony of camera shutters from the wall of photographers and birders who filled the trail. Eric was happy just seeing the bird up close with his binoculars but being a photographer but I wanted to get at least a few photographs. We watched as he moved from branch to branch searching for food. We were only there for maybe fifteen minutes, satisfied with my shots, we walked further down the trail to see what other wildlife was out. The trail mainly had common species for the area such as Mourning Doves, Downy Woodpeckers, an American Crow, White-Breasted Nuthatches, Common Redpolls and Dark-Eyed Juncos. Headed back, we noticed that the flycatcher had moved, not by seeing the bird but rather by observing the many birders crowding for a photo. The flycatcher was now in the middle of the trail, likely trying to get the most of the asphalt's heat. I got a few more photos from a distance before we headed back to the car.
This individual was first observed on November 13th, 2020 and not seen again after the 17th, likely having succumbed to the cold and/or hunger due the lack of insects. Being a tropical species, Variegated Flycatchers are not able to withstand the harsh Canadian winters and do not survive long. While this may be sad, it helps strengthen the species as a whole. Those who migrate to North America by accident likely have a detrimental mutation effecting their internal navigation system, By not surviving, they are less likely to pass on this negative trait to any offspring, removing it from the gene pool. Despite having gone to see a lost bird in the last few days of its life, it was something I am glad to have experienced, as I was fortunate enough to see such a rare and extraordinary animal with its beautiful cinnamon tail and yellow-ish colouration, a memory I will cherish.
Greenlaw, Jon S. "Foraging Behaviour of the Variegated Flycatcher (Empidonomus varius) at Two North American Vagrancy Sites in the Context of Foraging in its Native Range." The University of New Mexico, Florida Field Naturalists, Mar. 2017,
sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/2.%20GREENLAW%2C%20FLYCATCHER%2C%20FFN%2045%281%29.pdf.
"Variegated Flycatcher." eBird, The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, ebird.org/species/varfly.
sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/2.%20GREENLAW%2C%20FLYCATCHER%2C%20FFN%2045%281%29.pdf.
"Variegated Flycatcher." eBird, The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, ebird.org/species/varfly.