Hiding Eastern Phoebe?

Here's an Eastern Phoebe I met last spring. Does the phoebe think it's hiding behind that twig? Probably not, though it's hard to get into the brain of a bird and figure out what they're thinking. Perhaps a small bird could misinterpret a small twig to be providing more protection than a human would attribute to it.

Although gnats are a subset of flies, there is not really a corresponding relationship between gnatcatchers (like the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher) and the tyrant flycatchers (like the Eastern Phoebe) [1]. And their names are both somewhat misleading, with gnatcatchers and many flycatchers being general-purpose insectivores rather than gnat and fly specialists.

May 3, 2023 at Duke Farms
Photo 278557410, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


[1] Though gnatcatchers and flycatchers both passerines, so are crows, sparrows, warblers, and many more.

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