Birds
Great Crested Flycatcher
Myiarchus crinitus · also called great crested flycatchers
A birdwatcher peers into an old woodpecker hole and finds a great crested flycatcher’s nest lined with an unmistakable strip of shed snake skin, a small but genuinely strange detail that has puzzled ornithologists for generations.
Overview
The great crested flycatcher, Myiarchus crinitus, is a loud, insect-hunting bird native to deciduous and mixed forest habitat across the eastern United States and southeastern Canada. Its unusual snake-skin-lined nest, cavity-nesting habit, and distinctive sharp call make it one of the more behaviourally curious flycatchers in North America.
A nest lining with an unsolved purpose
Whether it’s genuine shed snake skin or a substituted strip of plastic, the great crested flycatcher’s habit of weaving crinkly material into its nest remains one of the more charmingly unresolved puzzles in North American bird behaviour.
Status
Least Concern — widespread and stable across suitable forest habitat throughout the eastern United States and southeastern Canada.
Great Crested Flycatcher: common questions
Why does the great crested flycatcher put snake skin in its nest?
This species frequently weaves a piece of shed snake skin into the lining of its tree-cavity nest, and while the exact purpose remains debated, one leading idea is that the texture or rustling sound may help deter potential nest predators from investigating further.
What does the great crested flycatcher use if it can't find snake skin?
Where shed snake skin is scarce, this species readily substitutes cellophane, plastic wrap, or other thin, crinkly material, a behaviour that suggests the texture or sound of the material may matter as much as it actually being snake skin.
Does the great crested flycatcher build an open nest like other flycatchers?
No, unlike many flycatchers that build open cup nests in tree branches, the great crested flycatcher nests inside natural tree cavities or old woodpecker holes, a cavity-nesting strategy less common among its family.
How does the great crested flycatcher catch its food?
It typically watches from a perch in the forest canopy and darts out to snatch flying insects directly from the air, a hunting technique called hawking that is shared with many other flycatcher species.