The boat-billed tody-tyrant is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname.
Region
Guianas and northern Amazon Basin
Typical Environment
Occurs in lowland tropical moist forests of Brazil (Amapá and northern Pará), French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname. Prefers dense understory, vine tangles, and forest edges, often near streams or light gaps. Uses terra firme forest but also frequents secondary growth and thickets along forest margins. It remains close to the ground to mid-understory, using shaded perches and short sallies to capture prey.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 600 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
This tiny flycatcher has a notably broad, flattened bill that gives it a ‘boat-billed’ look and helps it snatch small insects from foliage. It keeps low in dense understory thickets and is more often heard than seen. Nests are typically domed or hanging structures with a side entrance, hidden in vine tangles. It often joins mixed-species understory flocks and may respond to imitated pygmy-owl calls.
Temperament
solitary and skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually seen singly or in pairs in the understory, keeping to dense cover. It performs short sallies from low perches to glean insects from leaves and twigs. Nests are well-concealed, often hanging or domed structures placed in vine tangles with a side entrance.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Vocalizations are thin, high-pitched notes and brief trills, often delivered from concealed perches. Calls can be a series of sharp chips followed by a rapid, slightly descending trill.
Plumage
Small, compact tody-tyrant with olive-green to brownish-olive upperparts and paler grayish to buff underparts; throat often paler. Two faint buff wingbars and subtle streaking or wash on the breast may be visible at close range. The bill is short, broad, and flattened, accentuating the ‘boat-billed’ profile.
Diet
Primarily small arthropods such as flies, beetles, spiders, and other tiny insects. Forages by sally-gleaning from low perches, snapping prey from leaf surfaces and twigs. Occasionally hawks briefly into the air to catch flying insects. Feeding is methodical and focused within dense foliage.
Preferred Environment
Dense understory of humid lowland forest, vine tangles, and edges near clearings or streams. Also uses secondary growth and thickets where cover is abundant.
