The northern bentbill is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama.
Region
Mesoamerica
Typical Environment
Occurs from southern Mexico through Central America into northwestern Colombia, primarily in humid lowland and foothill zones. It favors dense understory, vine tangles, and thickets in evergreen and semi-evergreen forests. Common at forest edges, along streams, in second growth, and in shaded plantations. It is generally a skulker, staying within shaded, cluttered habitats where it forages at low to mid levels.
Altitude Range
0–1200 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A tiny tyrant flycatcher of dense lowland thickets, the northern bentbill is more often heard than seen. Its namesake ‘bent’ bill is short and slightly upturned, adapted for close-range gleaning in tangled vegetation. It readily occupies forest edges and second growth, so it often persists in moderately disturbed landscapes. Listen for its repetitive, thin calls to locate it in the understory.
Temperament
skulking and cautious
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or in pairs within dense understory; occasionally joins mixed-species flocks moving through edge and second-growth habitats. Nests are placed low to mid-level in thick vegetation, where both sexes participate in territory defense. Breeding territories are small and centered around reliable foraging patches.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Gives a series of thin, high-pitched tsit or tseet notes, often repeated in steady rhythm. Calls can accelerate slightly and carry surprisingly well in dense cover.
