Listen to the black phoebe
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the black phoebe
The black phoebe is a bird in the family Tyrannidae (order Passeriformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “least concern”.
What does the black phoebe sound like?
Most birds have two kinds of vocalisation: songs, which are learned or innate phrases delivered mainly in spring and summer, and calls – brief contact, alarm and begging notes heard all year round. Listening for both helps with identification.
The recordings here are labelled as song and call. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The black phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) is a passerine bird in the tyrant-flycatcher family. It breeds from southwest Oregon and California south through Central and South America. It occurs year-round throughout most of its range and migrates less than the other birds in its genus though its northern populations are partially migratory. Six subspecies are commonly recognized although two are occasionally combined as a separate species, the white-winged phoebe.
The black phoebe has predominantly black plumage, with a white belly and undertail coverts. The sexes are identical in color, and juveniles have brown feather tips and brown wing-bars. Its song is a repeated tee-hee, tee ho. It lives in a variety of habitats but is always near water. It is mainly insectivorous and waits on a perch before sallying out and catching its prey in the air. It makes an open cup nest which is placed under a cliff or a bridge and cemented in its place with mud.
Related birds in the genus Sayornis
More from the family Tyrannidae
Great kiskadee
Pitangus sulphuratus
Eastern kingbird
Tyrannus tyrannus
Cliff flycatcher
Hirundinea ferruginea
Yellow-crowned tyrannulet
Tyrannulus elatus
Olive-sided flycatcher
Contopus cooperi
Yellow tyrannulet
Capsiempis flaveola
Masked water tyrant
Fluvicola nengeta
Acadian flycatcher
Empidonax virescens
Gray kingbird
Tyrannus dominicensis
Great crested flycatcher
Myiarchus crinitus
Lesser wagtail-tyrant
Stigmatura napensis
Frequently asked questions
What does a black phoebe sound like?
You can hear 2 recordings of the black phoebe on this page, including its song and call. Most birds have two kinds of vocalisation: songs, which are learned or innate phrases delivered mainly in spring and summer, and calls – brief contact, alarm and begging notes heard all year round.
Is the black phoebe endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the black phoebe as “least concern”.
What family does the black phoebe belong to?
The black phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) belongs to the family Tyrannidae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources & credits
- Song · Linda Vista Park, Santa Clara, California, United States by Jonathon Jongsma – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Linda Vista Park, Santa Clara, California, United States by Jonathon Jongsma – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q920950 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Black phoebe – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by Mike's Birds from Riverside, CA, US – CC BY-SA 2.0