page_title: Vermilion flycatcher
section_title: Taxonomy and systematics
hierarchical_section_title: Vermilion flycatcher / Taxonomy and systematics
caption_attribution_description: Pyrocephalus rubinus mexicanus Sclater, 1859
context_page_description: The vermilion flycatcher is a small passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family found throughout South America and southern North America. It is a striking exception among the generally drab Tyrannidae due to its vermilion-red coloration. The males have bright red crown, chests, and underparts, with brownish wings and tails. Females lack the vivid red coloration and can be hard to identify—they may be confused for the Say's phoebe. The vermilion flycatcher's song is a pit pit pit pidddrrrreedrr, which is variable and important in establishing a territory. Riparian habitats and semi-open environments are preferred. As aerial insectivores, they catch their prey while flying. Their several months-long molt begins in summer.
  Despite being socially monogamous, vermilion flycatchers will engage in extra-pair copulation. They also practice within-species brood parasitism, whereby females lay their eggs in the nest of another individual. Females build shallow open cup nests and incubate the brown-speckled whitish eggs. The male feeds the female during incubation. Two broods of two-to-three eggs are laid in a season lasting from March through June.
context_section_description: The tyrant flycatcher family, Tyrannidae, is a group of passerine birds present only in the Americas; its members are generally drab in coloration. Within it, the subfamily Fluvicolinae comprises the genera Pyrocephalus, Contopus, Empidonax, and Sayornis. They likely share a common ancestor that belonged in the genus Contopus or Xenotriccus and later diversified. The Pyrocephalus are most closely related to Sayornis in terms of morphology, but genetic analysis shows that they may be more closely related to Fluvicola. 
  The first description of the vermilion flycatcher was in 1839 by John Gould, who created the current genus Pyrocephalus, and designated his find as Pyrocephalus obscurus. The identification was based on specimens brought back by Charles Darwin on the second voyage of HMS Beagle, which lasted from 1831 to 1836. The species was then designated as Pyrocephalus rubinus by the English zoologist George Robert Gray in 1840, based on Darwin's specimen taken from James Island. A 2016 molecular study changed the taxonomy of the species, splitting off several new species and re-designated the original bird as Pyrocephalus obscurus. Before the study it was considered a monotypic genus, but now taxonomists (including the International Ornithologists' Union) have elevated three of the vermilion flycatcher subspecies to the rank of species: the Darwin's, San Cristóbal, and scarlet flycatchers. 
  The genus name Pyrocephalus is Greek and roughly translates to "fire head" or "flame headed". The specific epithet obscurus is Latin and means "dark" or "dusky". The common name comes from its vibrant coloration and its membership in the flycatcher family, which is reflected in its insect-rich diet.
caption: Museum specimen from 1890
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