Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Least Flycatcher (Empidonax minimus)

Abundance: Very Uncommon (at least 40 records in 11 counties, 3 in Kentucky and 8 in Tennessee).

Status: Transient during spring (at least 20 records) and fall (at least 6 records), and Summer Resident (at least 14 records); designated as an endangered breeding species by the Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission (2004); photograph (see link below).

Regional High Count: 2 (4 records below).

Information on Migration Records: 

5 or 6 May 1962 (1) Cumberland County, Tennessee (observer unspecified; Anonymous 1962a).

1 May 1983 (2) Barnes Hollow, Putnam County, Tennessee (Richard W. Simmers, Jr.; Stedman 1983c).

9 & 11 May 1984 (1) Barnes Hollow, Putnam County, Tennessee (Richard W. Simmers, Jr.; Stedman 1984c).

26 May 1986 (1 singing) South of Gainesboro, Jackson County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Damien J. Simbeck; Stedman 1986c).

17 September 1989 (1) Barnes Hollow, Putnam County, Tennessee (Richard W. Simmers, Jr.; Vogt 1990a).

16 September 1998 (?) ?, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

3 May 2000 (?) ?, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

12 May 2001 (1) Putnam County, Tennessee (Barbara H. Stedman; Casteel 2001c), a Spring Bird Count record.

3 May 2002 (1) City Lake, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

19 May 2002 (1) Science Hill, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

26 August 2003 (1) Mt. Zion, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004a).

26 April 2004 (1) Barnes Hollow, Putnam County, Tennessee (Richard W. Simmers, Jr.).

5 May 2004 (1 singing) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Michael P. O'Rourke unpubl. data).

6 May 2004 (1 singing) Walnut Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Winston A. Walden unpubl. data).

23 May 2005 (1 singing) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

26 April 2006 (1 singing and seen) Science Hill, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

13 May 2006 (2) Pulaski County, Kentucky (fide Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data), a Spring Bird Count record.

8 September 2006 (2) Casey Creek, Adair County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

25 September 2006 (1) Clifty Pond, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseana M. Denton photo and unpubl. data).

10 May 2007 (1 singing) Peninsula Rd., Barren County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

11 May 2007 (1) Fishing Creek, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

13 May 2007 (1) Mt. Zion, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl data).

30 September/1 October 2007 (1 singing/1 calling) Leffle Webb Rd., Cumberland County, Tennessee (Edmund K. LeGrand unpubl. data).

6 May 2008 (1/1--singing) Holmes Bend Rd./Rt. 551 bridge over Green River Lake, Adair County, Kentucky (Barbara H. Stedman unpubl. data/Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data), a Spring BirdBlitz record.

8 May 2008 (1) Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

10 May 2008 (2--singing) Upperman High School, Baxter, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Carol D. Williams, Susan E. Pirolo unpubl. data), a Spring Bird Count record.

Information on Breeding Season Records: 

Summer 1973 (number unspecified) DeKalb County, Tennessee (Herbert E. Shadowen; Shadowen 1978).

2 June 1979 (1) c. 10 km southeast of Sharp Place on Rt. 2451, Fentress County, Tennessee (Glen King, Charles P. Nicholson; Nicholson 1981).

4 June 1979 (1) Intersection of Rt. 2451 and Rt. 154 at Sharp Place, Fentress County, Tennessee (Holly Overton, Polly Ryder; Nicholson 1981).

1 June 1985 (1 singing) Smokey Junction BBS, Scott County, Tennessee (Charles P. Nicholson; Dubke and Dubke 1985b), a Breeding Bird Survey record.

June 1986 (1) Smokey Junction BBS, Scott County, Tennessee (Charles P. Nicholson), a Breeding Bird Survey record.

7 June 1987 (2) Smokey Junction BBS, Scott County, Tennessee (Charles P. Nicholson; Knight 1987d), a Breeding Bird Survey record.

20-21 June 1987 (1) Northern Bledsoe County, Tennessee (Richard L. Knight, Charles P. Nicholson; Knight 1987d).

12 June 1988 (1 singing) in an old orchard along the Calfkiller River, southeastern Putnam County, Tennessee (Barbara H.Stedman; Knight 1988d; Stedman 1993).

June 1989 (1) Smokey Junction BBS, Scott County, Tennessee (Charles P. Nicholson), a Breeding Bird Survey record.

June 1990 (1) Smokey Junction BBS, Scott County, Tennessee (Charles P. Nicholson), a Breeding Bird Survey record.

4 June 2000 (1) Hinch Mountain, Cumberland County, Tennessee (Debbie Shannon, Roi Shannon; Knight 2000d).

2 June 2002 (2 singing) Frozen Head State Natural Area, Morgan County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Knight 2002d).

28 May/5 June 2005 (1 singing/ 1 singing) near Tub Spring, Frozen Head State Natural Area, Morgan County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Joseph E. Mast/Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

1 June 2006 (1 singing) Acorn vicinity, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Early Spring: 26 April 2004 (1; Putnam County, Tennessee; Richard W. Simmers, Jr.) and 26 April 2006 (1; Pulaski County, Kentucky; Roseanna M. Denton).

    Late Fall: 1 October 2007 (1; Cumberland County, Tennessee; Edmund K. LeGrand).

    Note: The extreme dates are provided as for Summer Residents.

Breeding: Possible; no positive evidence has yet been reported, but this circumstance results primarily from the species' scarcity as a breeder and secondarily from lack of effort to discover breeding evidence during the few encounters when such evidence might have been obtained.

Habitat: Potential breeding birds have been found in a variety of habitats.  The bird in Bledsoe County, Tennessee, 20-21 June 1987 inhabited a grove of red cedars (Knight 1987d).  The bird in Jackson County, Tennessee, 26 May 1986 inhabited a small orchard (Stedman 1986c).  The two birds in Frozen Head State Natural Area, Morgan County, Tennessee, 2 June 2002 inhabited a mature deciduous forest with a fairly open understory (S. J. Stedman, pers. ob.). During migration this species may be found in an even wider range of habitats.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: No registrations.

Remarks: The elevation where Least Flycatchers have been observed during the month of June in the Region varies greatly, ranging from a low elevation of 292 m (960 ft) in Bledsoe County, Tennessee (Knight 1987d), to a high elevation of at least 914 m (3000 ft) in Morgan County, Tennessee (Knight 2002d).

    The registration of this scarce and retiring species five times during early June in the late 1980s and early 1990s on the Smokey Junction Breeding Bird Survey route in Scott County, Tennessee, is of particular interest, suggesting that it might be a semi-regular, if scarce, breeder at favored sites in that county and perhaps around the Region.

Counties with Observations (boldfaced):

To see a map (Figure 1) displaying the data in the table above, click on the boldfaced word in this sentence.

Literature Cited