black phoebe
sayornis nigricans latin

The Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) is a passerine bird in the tyrant-flycatcher family.

Nesting species include Swainson's hawks, great-horned owls, wood ducks, tree swallows, and black phoebe.

The Black Phoebe breeds in the west and southwest United States, Mexico and Central America, and parts of South America.

Among the species found on the beach and its dunes are, but not limited to, California brown pelican, red-tailed hawk, American kestrel, western snowy plover, western gull, black phoebe, western scrub-jay, California towhee, and white-crowned sparrow.

The Black Phoebe has six subspecies, but these can be divided into two groups which are sometimes considered to be separate species: the nigricans group (Black Phoebe) and the latirostris group (White-winged Phoebe).

In the downstream rocky streambed reaches of the creek there are a variety of birds commonly observed including mallard, Black Phoebe, Common Merganser, Red-shouldered Hawk, Snowy Egret, Belted Kingfisher, Great Blue Heron and Black-crowned Night-Heron.

The Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) is a passerine bird in the tyrant-flycatcher family.