Eastern Phoebe

Eastern Phoebe
Fore River Sanctuary, Portland, Maine, USA
August 2016
Member of the Member Tyrant Family
§A Zipper of Flycatchers§

~true bird fact~ A weird loner of a bird if there ever was one, the Eastern Phoebe is unique in that she chooses not to spend time with others of her kind. Even mating pairs don't spend time with one another, and females often chase their mate away while she's still on the nest.

~true bird history~ The first bird to ever be 'banded' in North America. A silver strand was wrapped around his leg by John James Audubon himself in 1804, so that he would be able to tell when (and to where) this particular bird would return to every year. Banding is still the primary way we keep track of bird migration patterns.

Refined tastes, a collector of fine things
A master of unilaterally ending conversations
Holds self and others to an unfairly high standard
Struggles to express affection, warmth