The adult black-shouldered kite is around 35 cm (14 in) in length, with a wingspan of between 80 and 100 cm (31 and 39 in). The female is slightly heavier, weighing on average around 300 g (11 oz) compared to the male's average weight of 260 g (9.2 oz). The sexes have similar plumage. The crown, neck and upperparts are pale grey, while the head and underparts are white. A black comma-shaped marking lies in front of and stretches over and behind the eye, which is deep red and surrounded by a black orbital ring. The leading edge of the outer wing is black. When perched, this gives the species its prominent black "shoulders". The central rectrices of the tail are pale grey, while the rest of the tail feathers are white. The bill is short with a sharp, hooked tip to the upper mandible. Its nostrils and the cere are bright or dull yellow and the bill is black. The legs and feet are also yellow or golden-yellow, and the feet have three toes facing forwards and one toe facing backwards.
The juvenile has a white forehead and chin and rusty brown neck, nape and breast with darker streaks. The back and wings are mottled buff or brown. There is a less distinctive dark shoulder patch, but a larger comma-shaped patch over the eyes. The eyes themselves are dark brown. The bill is black with a horn-coloured cere.
Black-shouldered kites spiral into the wind like a kestrel. They soar with v-shaped up-curved wings, the primaries slightly spread and the tail widely fanned, giving the tail a squarer appearance and visible 'fingers' on the wings. In level flight progress is rather indirect. Their flight pattern has been described as 'winnowing' with soft steady beats interspersed with long glides on angled wings. They can most often be seen hovering with wings curved and tail pointing down.
The black-shouldered kite is very similar to the related letter-winged kite (E. scriptus), but has the black mark above and behind the eye, a white rather than grey crown, and shows all-white underparts in flight except for the black markings on the shoulder, dark wingtips, and a small black patch on the underwing. It is slightly larger than the nankeen kestrel (Falco cenchroides). The latter species lacks wing markings and has pale brown plumage. It keeps its wings level when soaring, and has a faster wingbeat when hovering. The grey falcon (Falco hypoleucos) has somewhat similar coloration to the black-shouldered kite but is bulkier and heavier overall and lacks the black markings. Its wings are barred and it preys on birds. The grey goshawk (Accipiter novaehollandiae) has wider more rounded wings, underwing markings and glides with lowered wings.


The black-shouldered kite is generally silent, except in the breeding season when its calls, though weak, can be persistent. It primarily utters a clear whistled chee, chee, chee call in flight and while hovering, or a hoarse wheezing skree-ah when perched. A short high whistle is the primary contact call between a pair, while a harsh scraping call is the most common call used by the female and large young, and brooding females call to their young with a deep, soft, frog-like croak.
A variety of different calls have been recorded from captive birds, including harsh, harmonic, chatter and whistle vocalisations. Harsh calls were made when a bird was alarmed or agitated, whistle-type calls were emitted in general contexts, sometimes monotonously, and shorter duration "chatter" calls were given when a bird sighted a human near the enclosure.


Black-shouldered kites may be sedentary or nomadic, and are generally found in open grasslands or valleys where there are scattered clumps of trees, where the grass or groundcover is accessible from the air and ranges from 30 cm to 1.5 m (1–3 ft) high. As well as native grasslands they forage over pastures, cereal or vegetable crops and vineyards, often focusing on areas that have been recently harvested or ploughed and hence rendering prey more exposed. In urban areas they are encountered on the edge of towns on wasteland, irregularly mown areas, sports fields, golf courses or grassy roadside verges. They also hunt over coastal dunes and drier marshland, but avoid areas with dense cover such as forest as well as bare or rocky ground.
Their numbers fluctuate during drought and floods, and can be irruptive in response to sudden increases in mouse populations. The most distant banding recovery was from the Red Banks area in South Australia to Lithgow in eastern New South Wales three and a half years later, a distance of 1,073 km (667 mi).
Although reported throughout Australia, they are most common in the relatively fertile south-east and south-west corners of the mainland, and in south-east Queensland. They are rare in the deep desert and dryer areas such as western Cape York or the Northern Territory, and are occasional visitors to northern Tasmania, King Island, and the Torres Strait islands.


Black-shouldered kites usually hunt singly or in pairs, though where food is plentiful they occur in small family groups and can be loosely gregarious at times of irruptions, with up to 70 birds reported feeding together during a mouse plague. They roost communally, like other Elanus species. They are territorial when food is not abundant. The practice of "tail flicking" where, on landing, the tail is flicked up and lowered and the movement repeated persistently is thought to be a possible territorial display.


Aerial courtship displays involve single and mutual high circling flight, and the male may fly around with wings held high rapidly fluttering, known as flutter-flight. Courting males dive at the female, feeding her in mid-flight. The female grabs food from the male's talons with hers while flipping upside-down. They may lock talons and tumble downwards in a ritualised version of grappling, but release just before landing. All courtship displays are accompanied by constant calling.
Black-shouldered kites form monogamous pairs. The breeding season is usually August to January, but is responsive to mice populations, and some pairs breed twice in a good season. Both sexes collect material for the nest but the female alone builds it. A large untidy shallow cup of sticks usually in the foliage near the top of trees, the nest takes anywhere from two to six weeks to be built. It is constructed of thin twigs and is around 28 to 38 cm (11 to 15 in) across when newly built, but growing to around 78 cm (31 in) across and 58 cm (23 in) deep after repeated use. The nest is lined with green leaves and felted fur, though linings of grass and cow dung have also been reported. It is generally located in the canopy of an isolated or exposed tree in open country, elevated 5 to 20 m (16 to 66 ft) or more above the ground. Black-shouldered kites have been known to use old Australian magpie, crow or raven nests.
Females perform most of the care of eggs and nestlings, though males take a minor share of incubation and brooding. The clutch consists of three to four dull white eggs of a tapered oval shape measuring 42 mm × 31 mm (1.7 in × 1.2 in) and with red-brown blotches that are often heavier around the larger end of the egg. The eggs are laid at intervals of two to five days. The female incubates the eggs for 30 days and when the eggs hatch the chicks are helpless but have soft down covering their body. For the first two weeks or so the female broods the chicks constantly, both day and night. She does no hunting at all for the first three weeks after hatching, but calls to the male from the nest, and he generally responds by bringing food. The female feeds the chicks with the mice brought back to the nest by the male, feeding them in tiny pieces for the first week or two, at which time the chicks are capable of swallowing a mouse whole. The nestling period lasts around 36 days, and the post-fledging period at least 36 days with parental feeding for at least 22 days. When the chicks are older both parents take it in turns to feed them. Black feathers start to appear along the chicks' wings when they are about a fortnight old, and they are fully fledged and are ready to fly in five weeks. Within a week of leaving the nest the young birds are capable of hunting for mice on their own.
Juveniles disperse widely, taking up territory that can be as far as 1,000 km (600 mi) from the nest site.


The black-shouldered kite has become a specialist predator of the introduced house mouse, often following outbreaks of mouse plagues in rural areas. It takes other suitably-sized creatures when available, including grasshoppers, rats, small reptiles, birds, and even (very rarely) rabbits, but mice and other mouse-sized mammals account for over 90% of its diet. Its influence on mouse populations is probably significant; adults take two or three mice a day each if they can, around a thousand mice a year. On one occasion, a male was observed bringing no less than 14 mice to a nest of well-advanced fledglings within an hour. In another study, a female kite was seen to struggle back to fledglings in the nest with a three-quarters grown rabbit, a heavy load for such a small bird.
Like other elanid kites, the black-shouldered kite hunts by quartering grasslands for small creatures. This can be from a perch, but more often by hovering in mid-air. It is diurnal, preferring to hunt during the day, particularly in the early morning and mid to late afternoon, and occasionally hunts in pairs. Its hunting pattern, outside breeding periods and periods of abundant prey, has distinct crepuscular peaks, perhaps corresponding to mouse activity. When hunting, the kite hovers with its body hanging almost vertically, and its head into the wind. Unlike the nankeen kestrel, the black-winged kite shows no obvious sideways movement, even in a strong breeze. One study of a nesting pair noted that the male searched aerially for 82% of the search time. Typically, a kite hovers 10 to 12 m (35 to 40 ft) above a particular spot, peering down intently, sometimes for only a few seconds, often for a minute or more, then glides swiftly to a new vantage point and hovers again. When hunting from a perch, a dead tree is the preferred platform. Like other Elanus kites, The black-shouldered kite grips a vertical branch with a foot on either side, each one above the other and turned inwards, which enables them to maintain a secure footing on relatively small branches. Though hovering is the most common hunting method, the kites have been observed searching the ground beneath a vantage point for periods of up to an hour.
When a mouse or other prey is spotted, the kite drops silently onto it, feet-first with wings raised high; sometimes in one long drop to ground level, more often in two or more stages, with hovering pauses at intermediate heights. Prey is seized in the talons and about 75% of attacks are successful. Prey can either be eaten in flight or carried back to a perch. Birds will have a favoured feeding perch, beneath which accumulate piles of pellets or castings.


European occupation of Australia has, on the whole, benefited the black-shouldered kite through land clearing and irrigation for agriculture and grain harvesting and storage practices which provide suitable conditions for much larger numbers of mice. As the species has a large range and an increasing population, it is listed as "Least Concern" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened species. In southwestern Australia, it has become one of the most commonly recorded raptors in the wheatbelt. According to raptor researcher Stephen Debus, this species did not suffer from eggshell thinning during the period of DDT use in Australia, though he believes secondary poisoning is possible from rodenticides used during mouse plagues or from pesticides used during locust plagues. Populations in areas with high sheep and rabbit numbers may decline, as these animals compact the soil and reduce the available habitat for mice.


The black-winged kite (Elanus caeruleus), also known as the black-shouldered kite (not to be confused with the closely related Australian species with the same name), is a small diurnal bird of prey in the family Accipitridae best known for its habit of hovering over open grasslands in the manner of the much smaller kestrels. This Palearctic and Afrotropical species was sometimes combined with the Australian black-shouldered kite (Elanus axillaris) and the white-tailed kite (Elanus leucurus) of North and South America which together form a superspecies. This kite is distinctive, with long wings; white, grey and black plumage; and owl-like forward-facing eyes with red irises. The owl-like behaviour is even more pronounced in the letter-winged kite (Elanus scriptus), a nocturnal relative in Australia. Although mainly seen on plains, they are sometimes seen on grassy slopes of hills in the higher elevation regions of Asia. They are not migratory, but show nomadism in response to weather and food availability. They are well adapted to utilize periodic upsurges in rodent populations and can raise multiple broods in a single year unlike most birds of prey. Populations in southern Europe have grown in response to human activities, particularly agriculture and livestock rearing.


The black-winged kite was described by the French naturalist René Louiche Desfontaines in 1789 and given the binomial name Falco caeruleus. It is now one of four species in the genus Elanus which was introduced in 1809 by the French zoologist Jules-César Savigny. The genus Elanus is distinctive in having very small scales covering the foot and on the underside, scutellate scales are found only under the terminal phalanges. The claw lacks a groove on the underside. The word  Elanus is from Ancient Greek elanos for a "kite". The specific epithet caeruleus is the Latin for "blue".
There are three subspecies:
E. c. caeruleus (Desfontaines, 1789) – southwest Iberian Peninsula, Africa, southwest Arabia
E. c. vociferus (Latham, 1790) – Pakistan to east China, Malay Peninsula and Indochina. The underwing secondaries are smoky grey and nearly white in the nominate subspecies.
E. c. hypoleucus Gould, 1859 – Greater and Lesser Sunda Islands, the Philippines, Sulawesi and New Guinea


The black-winged kite is a species primarily of open land and semi-deserts in sub-Saharan Africa and tropical Asia, but it has a foothold within Europe in Spain and Portugal. The species range appears to be expanding in southern Europe and possibly in West Asia. The first records of breeding in Europe were in the 1860s and since then they have become more widespread and populations are on the rise. It is thought that land-use changes, particularly agriculture and pastureland have helped the species.
Several geographic populations have been named as subspecies and these include the nominate subspecies which occurs in Spain, Africa and Arabia. The subspecies vociferus is found east of this range across South Asia and into Southeast Asia. Along Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Philippines subspecies hypoleucus (sometimes considered a full species) includes the population wahgiensis described from New Guinea. Subspecies sumatranus is not always recognized. The white-tailed kite and the black-shouldered kite were formerly included with this species but have since been treated as separate species.
Although found mainly on the plains they have been seen at higher altitudes in Sikkim (3,650 m (11,980 ft)), the Nilgiris (Doddabetta, 2,670 m (8,760 ft)) and Nagaland (2,020 m (6,630 ft)).
They are said to be winter visitors in some parts of their range such as the Western Ghats.


The black-winged kite breeds at different times of the year across its range. Although nesting has been noted throughout the year in India, they appear not to breed in April and May. Males establish territories and defend them from competition. Females move into the territories of males. Studies in Africa found that males were more numerous than females. Courtship is noisy and involves chases and once the pair is formed they copulate frequently. The nest is a loose platform of twigs in which 3 or 4 eggs are laid. The female spends more effort in the construction of the nest than the male. The eggs are pale creamy with spots of deep red. Both parents incubate but when the chicks hatch, the male spends more time on foraging for food. Females initially feed the young, sometimes hunting close to the nest but will also receive food from the male. After fledging the young birds continue to be dependent for food on the male parent for about 80 days, initially transferring food at perch and later in the air. Young birds have reddish brown feathers on the upperparts and on the breast. The reddish colour is derived from porphyrins and is thought to provide the young birds some camouflage. Once breeding is complete females often move on to new territories sometimes deserting before the young fledge, leaving males to feed and raise the young. Both males and females show considerable nomadism. Unlike most birds of prey, they are capable of raising multiple broods in a year, and young birds are known to disperse widely, adaptations that helps them utilize periodic rodent population surges. Their opportunistic breeding capabilities are also accompanied by irregular patterns of moult. Young birds show "arrested" moult, retaining feathers for a season and then rapidly moulting them in a serial descendent pattern, where more than one primary feather is moulted at the same time. The adult plumage is found after two years.
Their prey includes grasshoppers, crickets and other large insects, lizards, and rodents. Injured birds, small snakes and frogs have also been reported. The black-winged kite flies slowly during hunting like a harrier, but it will also hover like a Kestrel. It has on rare occasions been known to hunt prey in flight. Perches are used for hunting and for feeding but large prey may sometimes be handled on the ground. In southern Africa, they appear to favour roadside verges for foraging and are sometimes killed by collisions with vehicles.
These birds roost communally with groups of 15 to 35 (larger numbers in Europe) converging at a large leafy tree. They are extremely silent and the calls recorded include a high-pitched squeal or a soft whistle. They call mainly during the breeding season and at the roost site.
A species of nematode, Physaloptera acuticauda, has been recorded as a parasite of the species in South Africa. A trematode species, Neodiplostomum elani,  has been described from a black-winged kite type host from Chandigarh. A feather louse Degeeriella elani is known from the species.
The soft feathers of black-winged kites can lead to adherence with some grass seeds which may be dispersed by the species. However such seeds can pose the risk of entangling their wings.


The white-tailed kite (Elanus leucurus) is a small raptor found in western North America and parts of South America.


The white-tailed kite was described in 1818 by the French ornithologist Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot under the binomial name Milvus leucurus with the type locality as Paraguay. It is now one of four species in the genus Elanus which was introduced in 1809 by the French zoologist Jules-César Savigny. The word Elanus is from Ancient Greek elanos for a "kite". The specific epithet leucurus is from the Ancient Greek leukouros for "white-tailed": leukos is "white" and oura is "tail".
For some recent decades, it was lumped with the black-winged kite of Europe and Africa as Elanus caeruleus and was collectively called black-shouldered kite. More recently it was argued that the white-tailed kite differed from the Old World species in size, shape, plumage, and behavior, and that these differences were sufficient to warrant full species status. This argument was accepted by the American Ornithologists' Union, so the white-tailed kite was returned to its original name. Meanwhile, the Old World E. caeruleus is once again called black-winged kite, while the name black-shouldered kite is now reserved for an Australian species, Elanus axillaris, which had also been lumped into E. caeruleus but is now regarded as separate again.


The coloration of the white-tailed kite is gull-like, but its shape and flight is falcon-like, with a rounded tail. Mainly white underneath, it has black wingtips and shoulders. A mid-sized kite, it measures 35–43 cm (14–17 in) in length, spans 88–102 cm (35–40 in) across the wings and weighs 250–380 g (8.8–13.4 oz). Both the wings and tail are relatively elongated, and the tarsus measures around 3.6 cm (1.4 in).


The white-tailed kite was rendered almost extinct in California in the 1930s and 1940s due to shooting and egg-collecting, but they are now common again. Their distribution is patchy, however. They can be found in the Central Valley and southern coastal areas, open land around Goleta including the Ellwood Mesa Open Space, marshes in Humboldt County, and also around the San Francisco Bay. Elsewhere in California, they are still rare or absent. They are also found from southern Texas and eastern Mexico to the Baja California Peninsula and through Central and South America to central Argentina and Chile.
Globally, they are not considered threatened species by the IUCN. On rare occasions the bird can be found far outside its usual range. At different times, two had been sighted in New England as of 2010.


White-tailed kites feed principally on rodents, and they are readily seen patrolling or hovering over lowland scrub or grassland. They rarely if ever eat other birds, and even in open cerrado, mixed-species feeding flocks will generally ignore them. Outside the breeding season, they roost communally in groups of up to 100.
White-tailed kites have been observed in aerial combat at the margins of territories, locking talons in a behavior described as "grappling".


In August 2010, one was repeatedly seen at the mouth of the Housatonic River in Connecticut. "One of only two that we know of from New England", according to Frank Gallow, associate director of the Connecticut Audubon Society Coastal Center.


The birch shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus) is species of shield bug in the Acanthosomatidae family. Shield bugs are often called "stink bugs" because they excrete a foul smelling liquid that is used to deter predators.


This rather common species has an holarctic range. It is widely distributed across Europe,  Northern Asia (excluding China) and in North America.


These shield bugs mainly inhabit sunny areas with mixed birch woodlands, deciduous trees and shrubs.


Elasmostethus interstinctus can reach a length of 8–11.5 millimetres (0.31–0.45 in). These shield bugs have a relatively flat body with  the entire upper surface covered with mostly black punctures. The dorsal side is a bright yellow-green, with various red markings. In particular, pronotum is yellow-green, scutellum is green with a red center, clavus and corium are intensely red and the apex of the elytra are also bright red. The ventral side and the  abdominal margins are yellow. Legs are yellow-green.
This species of shield bug can be confused with the Hawthorn Shield Bug (Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale), which is larger and more elongate and has a smaller lateral extensions of the pronotum.


The species overwinters in an adult stage in leaf litter, after which they emerge in the spring and start to mate. From early June to the middle August eggs are laid on the upper side of leaves of and on the catkins of birch, where the nymphs feed in aggregation. Their larvae feed usually on birch, but could also be found on aspen and hazel. They have also been found feeding on various other host plants, mainly on juniper, Quercus, Ilex, Vaccinium, Alnus, Fagus and Populus species. The new generation is complete by August.


Eleocharis palustris, the common spike-rush, creeping spike-rush or marsh spike-rush, is a species of mat-forming perennial flowering plants in the sedge family Cyperaceae. It grows in wetlands in Europe, North Africa, northern and central Asia (Siberia, China, Mongolia, Iran, Nepal, etc.) and North America (United States, Canada, Greenland, northern Mexico).  Eleocharis palustris is not easily distinguished from other closely related species and is extremely variable worldwide itself. The species epithet palustris is Latin for "of the marsh" and indicates its common habitat.


Numerous names have been proposed for subspecies and varieties. The following are recognized:
Eleocharis palustris subsp. iranica Kukkonen - Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan
Eleocharis palustris subsp. palustris - most of species range
Eleocharis palustris var. vigens L.H.Bailey - North America
Eleocharis palustris subsp. waltersii Bureš & Danihelka - Europe and Cyprus


Elephantopus carolinianus, common names Carolina elephantsfoot or leafy elephant's foot, is a species of flowering plant in the sunflower family. It is native to the United States from Florida north as far as Ohio, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, west to Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
Elephantopus carolinianus is a perennial herb sometimes as much as 120 cm (4 feet) tall. Leaves are elliptic or ovate to lanceolate, up to 12 cm (5 inches) long, darker on the upper side than they are on the lower side. The plant produces numerous small flower heads in a tight cluster, each head generally containing only 4-5 florets. Flowers bloom August to October.


Elephantopus tomentosus is a species of perennial flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. It blooms from July to September.
Common names include woolly elephant's foot and devil's grandmother.


Eleusine indica, the Indian goosegrass, yard-grass, goosegrass, wiregrass, or crowfootgrass, is a species of grass in the family Poaceae. It is a small annual grass distributed throughout the warmer areas of the world to about 50 degrees latitude. It is an invasive species in some areas.
Eleusine indica is closely related to Eleusine coracana (finger millet or African finger millet), and the diploid E. indica is likely an ancestor of the allotetraploid E. coracana.
Seeds of E. indica are edible and are sometimes used as a famine food, but yields are low.  It is an important weed of cultivated crops, lawns, and golf courses.  It thrives in disturbed areas with compacted soils in full sun.  Both tillage and herbicides are used in its control.  This low-growing grass is capable of setting seed even when closely mown.  Some populations have evolved resistance to certain herbicides, including glyphosate.
Eleusine indica performs C₄ photosynthesis and therefore can grow in hot climates and in the hotter months of the temperate zone.  Its seeds germinate later in spring than most other temperate zone weeds, such as crabgrasses.  Though usually considered an annual, it may survive for more than a year in climates not subject to frost.


Elliottia pyroliflora, the copperbush, is a plant in the family Ericaceae native to North America. It is a perennial shrub. Its leaves are alternate in arrangement with flat margins.


The plant is found in the Northwestern United States in Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and in Western Canada in British Columbia. Its habitats include mountainous regions, stream banks, and forest edges.


The eastern elliptio (Elliptio complanata)  is a freshwater mussel in the Unionidae family, native to Canada and the United States.


Elophila gyralis, the waterlily borer moth, is a moth in the family Crambidae. It was described by George Duryea Hulst in 1886. It is found in eastern North America, where it has been recorded from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Quebec, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin.
The wingspan is 16–30 mm. Adults are sexually dimorphic. Females mostly have uniform orangish-yellow to dark brown forewings, while those of the males are orangish brown to dark grayish brown. The hindwings range from whitish to gray. Adults have been recorded on wing year round in the southern part of the range.
The larvae feed on the leaves of waterlilies, boring into petioles.


Elophila gyralis gyralis
Elophila gyralis serralinealis (Barnes & Benjamin, 1924)


Elophila obliteralis, the waterlily leafcutter moth, is a moth of the family Crambidae. It was described by Francis Walker in 1859. It is native to eastern North America. It is an introduced species in Hawaii and South Africa.
The wingspan is 10–22 mm with the male being smaller than the female. Adults are on wing from May to August in North America.
The larvae feed on a wide range of aquatic plants, including Hydrilla verticillata, Eichhornia crassipes, Pistia stratiotes, Nymphaea and Potamogeton species. At birth, larvae have a longitudinal tracheal system and some long simple hairs but do not later acquire filamentous gills. It forms a case of leaf debris. The larvae are about 9 mm long and have a pale brown head and a dull pallid-green body.


Elymus canadensis, commonly known as Canada wild rye or Canadian wildrye, is a species of wild rye native to much of North America. It is most abundant in the central plains and Great Plains. It grows in a number of ecosystems, including woodlands, savannas, dunes, and prairies, sometimes in areas that have been disturbed.


Canada wild rye is a perennial bunchgrass reaching heights of 1 to 1.5 metres (3 ft 3 in to 4 ft 11 in). It grows from a small rhizome, forms a shallow, fine root network, and is a facultative mycotroph, receiving about 25% of its nutrients on average from symbiotic mycorrhizae. Its stems are hollow and tough at maturity and bear rough, flat leaves. The leaves can reach 15 mm (0.59 in) in width and are 20 to 30 cm (8 to 12 in) in length.
The inflorescence is a nodding spike up to 25 cm (10 in) long containing 5 to 20 spikelets. Each spikelet is 1 to 2 cm (1⁄2 to 3⁄4 in) long, not counting the sharp, hard, curling awn which may exceed 3 cm (1+1⁄4 in) in length.
Many forms and varieties have been named, but none are accepted at Kew's Plants of the World Online.


The gene pool of Elymus canadensis can provide information on promoting disease resistance in Hordeum vulgare (barley). In two different Elymus canadensis × Hordeum vulgare hybrid groups, the ones with Elymus canadensis cytoplasm were missing a chromosome that was homologous to the barley chromosome 7, and the ones with the Hordeum vulgare cytoplasm were missing a chromosome homologous to barley chromosome 3. The lack of each of the chromosomes in the hybrids was not random, and were caused by differences in DNA methylation. Thus, further research can use these differences in order to figure out what exactly makes Elymus canadensis so hardy, and be able to integrate its hardiness into barley so that the crop can withstand more environmental stress.
Elymus canadensis has also been shown to contain a novel high molecular weight (HMW) glutenin subunit (GS) allele. HMW-GS has been shown in wheat and other crops to determine its overall quality. Thus, further research could elaborate on the E. canadensis allele in order to improve our knowledge of HMW-GS' structural differentiation in different species, and its evolutionary history, in an attempt to increase crop quality through these alleles.
Elymus canadensis has a familiar relationship as a host with a variety of endophytic fungi. Such a symbiotic relationship could be part of the reason why E. canadensis has been so successful as a prairie grass, and may have played a large influence in the grass's evolutionary history. In fact, research suggests that the Epichloe do not hinder seed production in the host plant, so the fungi do not obstruct E. canadensis's reproduction, and may in fact aid the process. Further research can expand upon this fungal symbiotic relationship, perhaps to improve the success of agricultural crops. Specifically, research can examine if the different varieties of Epichloe will provide E. canadensis with agronomic qualities such as drought tolerance and field production. If this is supported, epichloe may be able to be used to improve the sustainability of crop populations that have a similar genetic makeup to E. canadensis.


Canada wild rye is sometimes used for stabilizing eroded areas and for vegetating metal-rich soils in reclaimed mines.
Elymus canadensis is an allotetraploid, which mainly reproduces by self-pollination, but can cross-pollinate with several other strains of Elymus in order to provide more genetic variation. In addition, because of its ability to cross-pollinate, new species can emerge through nature or breeding programs, thereby contributing more plants that could potentially lead to novel crops.
The cultivar 'Homestead' produces larger amounts of forage and has higher digestibility than "another adapted experimental strain" that it was compared against. The current primary use of 'Homestead' is intended for "conservation, roadside, and grassland seeding mixtures".


Elymus elymoides is a species of wild rye known by the common name squirreltail. This grass is native to most of North America west of the Mississippi River and occurs in a number of ecosystems, from the alpine zone to desert sage scrub to valley grassland.


Elymus elymoides is a perennial bunch grass growing to around 0.5 metres (20 in) in height. Its erect solid stems have flat or rolled leaf blades. The inflorescence is up to 15 centimetres (5.9 in) long and somewhat stiff and erect, with spikelets one or two centimeters long not counting the awn, which may be 9 centimeters long and sticks straight out at maturity, making the inflorescence look like a bottlebrush (see main image), and aiding wind dispersal of the seeds. In contrast, the early-season spike is compact and reddish, as in the images at left.
This grass is considered very good forage for sheep. It is best for grazing during the winter, when it is small and green. It becomes less palatable to livestock when its awns grow long and sharp at maturity.


The genus Elymus is a part of the Poaceae, the grass family, which is the most economically important plant family to modern human civilization. Evolving 55 million years ago, members of the Poaceae produce wheat, rice, and barley cereal grains. Elymus elymoides (also known as squirreltail) is a specific type of wild rye that experiences competitive forces when introduced to invasive species, such as cheat grass (Bromus tectorum). E. elymoides experiences a decrease in fitness when growing concurrently with B. tectorum, leading to natural selection acting negatively on E. elymoides. This is perhaps best seen in the Great Basin, as the dry environment makes water a limiting resource, resulting in competition over it. B. tectorum's advantages may be due to its ability to re-engineer that particular ecosystem's scarce water supply. B. tectorum affects Elymus multisetus similarly, indicating that the trait causing decreased fitness is shared among the entire genus Elymus.
Competition also occurs between E. elymoides and the invasive crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum). When introduced, crested wheatgrass negatively affects mature E. elymoides, despite being able to effectively compete at the seedling stage. If crested wheatgrass is used in rehabilitation or restoration of a site, then co-planting a native bunch grass, such as E. elymoides, may be helpful in preventing a crested wheatgrass monoculture. Because E. elymoides populations decline when introduced to certain populations, squirreltail may benefit more from a monoculture setting. This characteristic is supported by another species, Elymus nutas. However, although it is successful as a monoculture food source, it results in a reduction of carbon transfer and decreased soil health when grown alone. To preserve a prosperous Elymus elymoides food source, one must take into consideration its effects on the soil when grown alone, and its responses to competitive forces if grown with other plants.


Subspecies include:
E. e. ssp. brevifolius - widespread
E. e. ssp. californicus - occurs in the western half of the species range
E. e. ssp. elymoides - widespread
E. e. ssp. hordeoides - limited mostly to the Pacific Northwest


Elymus repens, commonly known as couch grass, is a very common perennial species of grass native to most of Europe, Asia, the Arctic biome, and northwest Africa. It has been brought into other mild northern climates for forage or erosion control, but is often considered a weed.
Other names include common couch, twitch, quick grass, quitch grass (also just quitch), dog grass, quackgrass, scutch grass, and witchgrass.


It has creeping rhizomes which enable it to grow rapidly across grassland. It has flat, hairy leaves with upright flower spikes. The stems ('culms') grow to 40–150 cm tall; the leaves are linear, 15–40 cm long and 3–10 mm broad at the base of the plant, with leaves higher on the stems 2–8.5 mm broad. The flower spike is 10–30 cm long, with spikelets 1–2 cm long, 5–7 mm broad and 3 mm thick with three to eight florets. The glumes are 7–12 mm long, usually without an awn or with only a short one.
It flowers at the end of June through to August in the Northern Hemisphere.


Various taxonomic subdivisions of this species have been proposed. Moreover, it is assigned to various genera (Elymus, Elytrigium, Agropyron). In a recent classification, three subspecies are distinguished, one of these with an additional variety:
Elytrigia repens subsp. repens. Throughout most of the range of the species.
Elytrigia repens subsp. repens var. repens. Awns usually absent or if present, very short.
Elytrigia repens subsp. repens var. aristata (Döll) P.D.Sell. Awns present, up to 15 mm long.
Elytrigia repens subsp. elongatiformis (Drobow) Tzvelev (syn. Elytrigia elongatiformis (Drobow) Nevski). Central and southwestern Asia, far southeastern Europe (Ukraine).
Elytrigia repens subsp. longearistata N. R. Cui. Western China (Xinjiang).
Hybrids are recorded with several related grasses, including Elytrigia juncea (Elytrigia × laxa (Fr.) Kerguélen), Elytrigia atherica (Elytrigia × drucei Stace), and with the barley species Hordeum secalinum (× Elytrordeum langei (K. Richt.) Hyl.).


The foliage is an important forage grass for many grazing mammals. The seeds are eaten by several species of grassland birds, particularly buntings and finches. The caterpillars of some Lepidoptera use it as a foodplant, e.g. the Essex skipper (Thymelicus lineola).


The dried rhizomes of couch grass were broken up and used as incense in medieval northern Europe where other resin-based types of incense were unavailable. Elymus repens (Agropyron repens) rhizomes have been used in the traditional Austrian medicine against fever, internally as a tea, syrup, or cold maceration in water, or externally applied as a crude drug.


Elytropappus rhinocerotis (commonly known as renosterbos or "rhinoceros bush") is a species of flowering plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae, endemic to South Africa. It is a very obvious component of the unique Renosterveld Vegetation Type, which is named after this bush.


Elytropappus rhinocerotis is a medicinal plant in traditional African medicine. The young tips of the branches are used in traditional medicine to treat indigestion and stomach ulcers. The foliage tips are now usually added to wine or brandy for such medicinal consumption.


Elytropappus rhinocerotis is cultivated as an ornamental plant for South African native plant, drought tolerant, and wildlife gardens. It is also planted in natural landscaping and habitat restoration projects.
A cultivar, which has a strikingly crisp, pure-white colour, is usually grown in gardens more than the direct species.


The  rock bunting (Emberiza cia) is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae.
The genus name Emberiza is from Old German Embritz, a bunting. The specific cia is from a local Italian name for this bird, from zirlare,  "to chirp".


The rock bunting breeds in open dry rocky mountainous areas.


This bird is 16 cm in length. The breeding male has chestnut upperparts, unmarked deep buff underparts, and a pale grey head marked with black striping.
The female rock bunting is a washed-out version of the male, with paler underparts, a grey-brown back and a less contrasted head.  The juvenile is similar to the female, but with a streaked head.
There are four races differing mainly in the plumage shades, although the subspecies which breeds in Europe, Africa and western Turkey is the only one to show white wing bars.


It lays three to five greyish eggs in a lined nest on the ground or occasionally in a low bush. Its natural food consists of insects when feeding young, and otherwise seeds.


The cirl bunting (/ˈsɜːrl/ SURL), Emberiza cirlus, is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae.
It breeds across southern Europe, on the Mediterranean islands and in north Africa. It is a resident of these warmer areas, and does not migrate in winter. It is common in all sorts of open areas with some scrub or trees, but has a preference for sunny slopes. In the 19th century it has been introduced to New Zealand and the persistent population remains in the South Island.
Changes in agricultural practice have affected this species very adversely at the northern fringes of its range, and in England, where it once occurred over much of the south of the country, it is now restricted to south Devon. The cirl bunting is the mascot on the signs for the village of Stokeinteignhead in Devon.


The cirl bunting was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae under its current binomial name Emberiza cirlus. The genus name Emberiza is from Old German Embritz, a bunting. The specific cirlus is from a local Italian name cirlo, for a type of bunting, from zirlare,  "to chirp". The English cirl is derived from cirlus, "probably from zirlare, to whistle as a thrush". The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.


The cirl bunting is like a small yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella), and is around 15.5 cm (6.1 in) in length with a wing-span 22–25.5 cm (8.7–10.0 in). It has a thick seed-eater's bill. The male has a bright yellow head, with a black crown, eyestripe and throat, and a greenish breast band across its otherwise yellow underparts, and a heavily streaked brown back. The female is much more like the yellowhammer, but has a streaked grey-brown rump and chestnut shoulders.
The monotonous song of the cock is rattling trill, like Arctic warbler or the terminal rattle of lesser whitethroat.


Cirl buntings first breed when they are one year of age. The nest is at low level, within dense cover such as that provided by thick hedgerows and scrub. The ideal scrub is said to be blackthorn, hawthorn, bramble and gorse. The breeding season runs from April until mid-September, usually having two broods but occassionaly three. Two to five eggs are laid, which show the hair-like markings characteristic of buntings. They are incubated only by the female and hatch 12–13 days after the last egg is laid. The young are cared for and fed by both parents. They nestlings fledge after 11–13 days but continue to be fed by their parents for a further two or three weeks.


A very small cirl bunting population exists in South Devon in England, near the small town of Kingsbridge where the pioneering ornithologist George Montagu discovered the species, as he recorded in his book, the Ornithological Dictionary, 1802. The species appears to have first colonised Britain near Kingsbridge, most likely not long before Montagu described it. It expanded from there across southern England in the nineteenth century. It retreated from the 1930s onwards, so that by 1989 the population again survived mainly near Kingsbridge. Since then, conservation efforts have increased the population more than fivefold, but it remains almost wholly in Devon.


Through its Countryside Stewardship Scheme and environmental stewardship, Natural England has various options to conserve the species:
Allow stubbles to overwinter. Leave crops such as spring barley stubble untreated (no fertiliser, pesticide, or cultivation) until the end of the following March. This allows the cirl bunting to feed over the winter on the spilt grain and seeds of broad-leaved arable weeds like fat hen, chickweed, and annual meadow grass Poa annua, which grow in the meantime. The loss of this old farming practice led to the species' decline.
Maintain semi-improved or rough grassland and field margins, particularly tussocky grasses such as cock's-foot. These provide an overwintering habitat for insects, which in turn provides food for the cirl bunting and their chicks.
Sow barley-based wild bird seed mix crop. This crop has an open structure, allowing birds to forage.
Delay spraying insecticides to provide invertebrate food for as long as possible.
Leave hedgerows untrimmed for periods of time. This provides breeding areas and food.
A partnership between Natural England and the RSPB runs the "Cirl Bunting Project", part of a larger project called "Action for Birds". Through the efforts of conservation organisations and landowners, the cirl bunting population has increased from 118 pairs in 1989 to 700 pairs in 2003. However, their range has not expanded.


The yellow-throated bunting (Emberiza elegans), also known as the elegant bunting, is a species of bird in the family Emberizidae.
It is found in China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Russia, and Taiwan. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and subtropical or tropical dry forests.
Emberiza elegans follows Type II chain migration. Research on isotopes from feathers has revealed that northern populations begin migration before southern populations. Additionally, a latitudinal gradient in hydrogen isotopes suggest that northern breeders spend winters farther north than their southern counterparts.


The rustic bunting (Emberiza rustica) is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. The genus name Emberiza is from Old German Embritz, a bunting. The specific rustica is Latin for "rustic, simple".
It breeds across the northern Palearctic. It is migratory, wintering in south-east Asia, Japan, Korea, and eastern China. It is a rare wanderer to western Europe.
It breeds in wet coniferous woodland. Four to six eggs are laid in a nest in a bush or on the ground. Its natural food consists of seeds, and when feeding young, insects.
This bird is similar in size to a reed bunting. It has white underparts with reddish flank, pink legs and a pink lower mandible. The summer male has a black head with a white throat and supercilium and a reddish breast band.
The female has a heavily streaked brown back and brown face with a whitish supercilium. She resembles a female reed bunting, but has the reddish flank streaks, a chestnut nape and a pink, not grey, lower mandible.
The call is a distinctive zit, and the song is a melancholic delee-deloo-delee.


The common reed bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. The genus name Emberiza is from Old German Embritz, a bunting. The specific schoeniclus is from Ancient Greek skhoiniklos, a now unknown waterside bird.
It breeds across Europe and much of the Palearctic. Most birds migrate south in winter, but those in the milder south and west of the range are resident. It is common in reedbeds and also breeds in drier open areas such as moorland and cultivation. For example, it is a component of the purple moor grass and rush pastures,  a type of Biodiversity Action Plan habitat in the UK. It occurs on poorly drained neutral and acidic soils of the lowlands and upland fringe.


The common reed bunting was described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Fringilla schoeniclus. This bunting is now placed in the genus Emberiza that Linnaeus had introduced in the same edition of his Systema Naturae. The specific epithet schoeniclus  is from the Ancient Greek skhoiniklos, a word that was used by Greek authors for an unidentified bird. Linnaeus specified the type locality as Europe but this is now restricted to Sweden. Nineteen subspecies are recognised.
The bird family Emberizidae contains around 300 seed-eating species, the majority of which are found in the Americas, although the genus Emberiza, with more than 40 members, is confined to the Old World. Within its genus, the reed bunting is most closely related to the Japanese reed bunting and the Pallas's reed bunting, which are sometimes classified as being in the genus Schoeniclus.


Nineteen subspecies are recognised, including- E. s. schoeniclus, the nominate subspecies, which occurs in most of Europe, E. s. witherbyi which is found in south Portugal, western Spain, France and Sardinia, E. s. intermedia from Italy and the Adriatic coast to northwest Albania, E. s. reiseri from southeast Albania, northwest Greece, south North Macedonia and west and central Turkey, E. s. caspia from east Turkey and northwest Iran, E. s. korejewi from southwest and eastern Iran and south Turkmenistan, E. s. pyrrhuloides from north Caspian sea region to western Mongolia, southeast Kazakhstan and central Tien Shan, E. s. passerina from northwest Siberia, wintering in south Asia, E. s. parvirostris from central Siberia wintering in northern China, E. s. pyrrhulina from Kamchatka and northern Japan, wintering in central Japan, Korea and eastern China, E. s. pallidior from southwestern Siberia wintering in southwest Asia, E. s. minor from Russian Far East and northeast China, wintering in east China, E. s. ukrainae from Ukraine and adjacent areas of Russia, E. s. incognita from southeastern European Russia to north Kazakhstan and E. s. zaidamensis, endemic to northwest Qinghai, China.


The common reed bunting is a medium-sized bird, 13.5–15.5 cm (5.3–6.1 in) long, with a small but sturdy seed-eater's bill. The male has a black head and throat, white neck collar and underparts, and a heavily streaked brown back. The female is much duller, with a streaked brown head, and is more streaked below.
The song of the male is a repetitive srip.


Its natural food consists of insects when feeding young, and otherwise seeds.


Breeding normally starts in early April, finishing in late August depending on location and altitude. The species is monogamous. The nest is built using twigs, grass and reeds lined with finer materials such as hair, moss and rootlets in a bush or reed tussock. 4–5 olive-grey eggs are laid, which show the hair-like markings characteristic of those of buntings. The incubation period is 12–15 days where the chicks are fed by both parents.


The reed bunting is not globally threatened and classified as least concern by the IUCN. The estimated European population is that of at least 4.8 million pairs, with particular strongholds in Sweden, Poland and Norway. However the reed bunting is reportedly declining in Norway, Sweden and Germany.


The Pampa finch (Embernagra platensis), also known as the great Pampa-finch, is a species of bird.  It was traditionally placed in the family Emberizidae but molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that it is a member of the tanager family Thraupidae.


Emilia sonchifolia, also known as lilac tasselflower or cupid's shaving brush, is tropical flowering species of tasselflower in the sunflower family. It is widespread in tropical regions around the world, apparently native to Asia (China, India, Southeast Asia, etc.) and naturalized in Africa, Australia, the Americas, and various oceanic islands.
Emilia sonchifolia is a branching, annual herb up to 40 cm (15.5 in) tall. Leaves are lyrate-pinnatilobed, up to 10 cm (4 in) long, sometimes becoming purplish as they get old. One plant can produce several pink or purplish flower heads.
The plant is erect and sparingly hairy, soft-stemmed, and grows to 20 to 70 cm high with a branch tap root. The leaf pattern is alternate with winged petioles. Leaves on the lower end of the stem are round/oval shape, 4 to 16 cm in height, and 1 to 8 cm in width. The leaves on the upper end of the stem are smaller than the leaves on the lower end of the stem and are often coarsely toothed.
The inflorescence is often dichotomous, with 3 to 6 stalked flower heads and whorled bracts below. The urn-shaped flower head has 30-60 florets per head, the outer ray florets are female, and the inner disc florets are bisexual. The flower is any of a range of colors: purple, scarlet, red, pink, orange, white, or lilac. The fruit produced is oval shaped, reddish brown or off-white, has white hairs up to 8 mm long, and exhibits dry indehiscent properties.


Emilia sonchifolia completes its life cycle in approximately 90 days. There are two types of seed, which are defined by the color of the achene. The first, a female outer circle of florets of a flower head produces red and brown achenes. The second is the inner, off-white hermaphrodite florets. Most seeds germinate at 27 °C but those that develop from outer florets germinate under deep shade. Plants only emerge from seeds near the surface, however, some seed can germinate (4%) while buried deep (4 cm). The seed carries a pappus of hairs, indicating the use of wind as a dispersal agent.


Emilia sonchifolia is commonly reported as a weed crop. In most areas, it is reported as noninvasive, however, in some cotton producing areas, it is classified as the most problematic weeds.
It has certain effects on individual crops, such as decreases in weight of lettuce(by 70%) and mustard cabbage(by 30%), and a decreased yield of tomato fruit by 18%.
The pathogens associated with Emilia sonchifolia also have effects on certain crops. Emilia sonchifolia is a host of Xanthomonas campestris, which causes a bacterial infection in beans in Brazil and Cuba.


Emilia sonchifolia can grow anywhere from sea level to 1000 meters. It exists over a wide range of conditions from the tropics to grasslands, waste areas, roadsides, and partially shaded areas. It is tolerant of acid conditions.


It is a medicinal herb in Chinese, called ye xia hong (Chinese: 葉下紅). It is one among the "Ten Sacred Flowers of Kerala State in India, collectively known as Dasapushpam. In Vietnam, it has been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of fever, sore throat, diarrhea, eczema and as an antidote for snake bites.
The leaves and young shoots can be used, raw or cooked. The leaves are harvested before the plant flowers.
The young leaves are used as food in Java and Puerto Rico, however, in India and China, it is used medicinally.


Emilia sonchifolia is classified as a weed that grows in the fields of many agriculture crops, but it can be controlled via the use of certain chemicals. For example, in rice, a mixture of pretilachlor and dimethametryn, and a mixture of piperophos with propanil or oxidiazon, are added to the soil after sowing, resulting in 8–12 weeks of growth control against Emilia sonchifolia. In soybean fields, a mixture of bentazone, fomensafen and sethoxydim is used to control Emilia sonchifolia growth. In cotton and soybean fields, sethoxydim is the chemical agent used to control Emilia sonchifolia growth. Lastly, atrazine is the chemical agent used to control the growth of Emilia sonchifolia in sugarcane crops.


Emilia sonchifolia contains tumorigenic pyrrolizidine alkaloids, causing hepatotoxicity.


Emmenanthe is a monotypic genus which contains only one species, Emmenanthe penduliflora, known by the common name whispering bells. This grassland wildflower is native to California, though it can also be found in other locations within western North America.


Emmenanthe is monotypic genus of annual plants with fleshy foliage which exudes a sticky juice with a light medicinal odor. The plant comes up from a weedy-looking basal rosette of sharply lobed leaves. Inflorescence is a terminal cluster of flowers, borne on slender pedicels less than 1 inch long.  Blooms have five sepals and five yellow or pinkish petals in a bell-shaped.  Flowers dry and become light and papery. The dry hanging flowers make a rustling sound when a breeze comes through, giving the whispering bells its common name. The dry flower also contains a fruit about a centimeter wide.


This flower is most common in dry, recently burned areas; germination of the seeds may be triggered by the presence of burned plant material. It is a common plant of the chaparral ecosystem, which is prone to wildfire.
In Mexico, this species is found on the two states of the Baja California Peninsula. In Baja California, it is common in the northwestern part of the state, and ranges into the Central Desert. In Baja California Sur, it is found on the Vizcaino Peninsula. Additionally, this species also grows on Guadalupe Island in the Pacific Ocean.


The alder flycatcher (Empidonax alnorum) is a small insect-eating bird of the tyrant flycatcher family. The genus name Empidonax is from Ancient Greek empis, "gnat", and anax, "master". The specific alnorum is Latin and means "of the alders".


E. alnorum is one of the larger Empidonax species, attaining a length of 13–17 cm (5.1–6.7 in), and a mass of 12–14 g (0.42–0.49 oz). The wingspan ranges from 8.3–9.4 cm (3.3–3.7 in). Upperparts of E. alnorum are dull greenish-olive. The crown is a slightly darker olive-green than the back. The throat is white, with a darker breast band. Thin white rings surround the eyes. The bill is wide and moderate in length, with pinkish or yellow-orange lower mandible and black upper mandible. Wings are generally black, with white wing bars and white edges of the innermost secondaries (tertials). Juveniles have brownish upperparts, yellow underparts, and yellowish brown or buff wingbars.
E. alnorum is similar in appearance to the eastern wood-peewee (Contopus virens) and the eastern phoebe (Sayornis phoebe), as well as the nearly identical willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii) but E. alnorum can be distinguished by its smaller size and upward tail flicking behavior.
Birds in the genus Empidonax are notoriously hard to identify. Novel approaches to identification have been employed to try and increase the accuracy of species identification of mist-netted individuals, such as using ratios of and differences between the measured lengths of various body parts, including wings and beaks. Vocalizations are often relied upon for identification to species in the field when birds cannot be manipulated by hand.


The alder flycatcher is sibling species with the willow flycatcher (E. trailli). The two species were grouped together as one species, the Traill's flycatcher, until 1973, when differences in vocalizations and habitat use lead to their acknowledgement as distinct species, which has since been supported by genetic data. A study analyzing the genetic makeup of 12 Empidonax species found that the Alder and Willow Flycatcher are each other's closest relatives. The Tyrant flycatcher genus is closely related to the Wood-Pewee genus (Contopus), and a hybrid of the two genera was reported to have been caught in Idaho.


The summer breeding range of the species covers most of Canada and Alaska, descending to a southernmost point in the northeastern United States. In autumn, E. alnorum migrates south through the eastern United States, Mexico and Central America, wintering in the western range of South America.
In the summer breeding season, E. alnorum occupies wet, dense, shrubby thickets of alder (Alnus sp.), maple (Acer sp.), and birch (Betula sp.) at elevations below 1,300 ft (400 m). During migration, the species occupies humid and semi-arid habitats, including forest edges and fields at elevations up to 2,500 ft (760 m). Early successional scrubby vegetation or woodland edges are preferred habitats in winter, particularly those near water and below 1,100 ft (340 m).


The vocalizations of the alder flycatcher are very useful for its identification in the field. The song is a distinct "fee-bee-o"; birds have been observed to throw their heads back and shake their tails while singing. There are a variety of calls generated by E. alnorum, the most common of which is a "pit" sound produced when foraging. Other calls include those associated with aggressive or territorial behavior, including "double-peak", "zwee-oo", and "wee-oo" calls, and those linked with excitement, such as a "kitter" call.


E. alnorum's diet is composed primarily of insects such as those from the Hymenoptera (sawflies, bees, wasps and ants), Coleoptera (beetles), Diptera (flies), Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) and Orthoptera (locusts, grasshoppers and crickets) families. Insects are captured during flight or gleaned from foliage of trees. In the winter, some birds will include fruit and seeds in their diet.


The alder flycatcher breeds in wet thickets of maple, alder and birch. Nests are positioned low in bushes within shrubby thickets, and are cup-shaped, built loosely of vegetative materials such as grass, weeds, pieces of bark, and small twigs. Strips of grass or bark can often be seen dangling from the bottom of the nest, and the inside is lined with soft materials such as plant down. Females primarily engage in nest building activities.
Male E. alnorum vocalize to defend their breeding territory. As the species has not been extensively studied, courtship behavior is uncertain, but is believed to involve males chasing females through the trees.
3–4 eggs are laid per breeding season, and are creamy-white or buff in color and speckled with dark markings near the larger end of the egg. The female incubates the eggs for 12–14 days. Hatchlings are altricial and covered with tiny spots of olive-brown down. Both the male and female are involved in caring for the young. Juveniles take their first flight around 13–14 days of age.


E. alnorum is a species of least concern according to the IUCN Redlist. Population numbers are stable in the United States, but have declined in Canada by approximately 44% in the period 1966–2014. The species has a rating of 9 out of 20 on the Continental Concern Score, and is a U.S.-Canada Stewardship species.


The Pacific-slope flycatcher (Empidonax difficilis) is a small insectivorous bird of the family Tyrannidae.  It is native to coastal regions of western North America, including the Pacific Ocean and the southern Gulf of California, as far north as British Columbia and southern Alaska, but is replaced in the inland regions by the Cordilleran flycatcher.  These two species were classified as a single species, commonly called the western flycatcher, by the American Ornithologists’ Union until 1989.  In winter, both species migrate south to Mexico, where they are virtually indistinguishable from one another.


In plumage, the Pacific-slope flycatcher is virtually identical to the Cordilleran flycatcher, and differs only subtly from most Empidonax flycatchers in North America, but its breeding habitat and call are different. Its call can vary slightly by different regions and the bird itself.


The Pacific-slope flycatcher inhabits either coniferous or deciduous forests. In its range it enters mixed woods, Douglas fir forests, redwood forests, and many other wooded environments including riparian woodlands.
As of November 2019, there has been one case of these West Coast birds showing up on the East Coast, in Palmyra, New Jersey.


As a flycatcher it will wait on a perch and when it sees a flying insect it will chase it without any apparent effort. They also enter swarms of gnats, mosquitos and wherever such insects congregate. They fulfill an important role in keeping insect populations in check, particularly mosquitoes, and they also eat caterpillars and spiders.


The buff-breasted flycatcher (Empidonax fulvifrons) is a small insectivorous bird. It is the smallest Empidonax flycatcher, typically ranging from 11.5 to 13 cm (4.5 to 5 in) in size.
Adults have olive gray upper bodies, darker coloration on the wings and tail, conspicuous white eye rings, white wing bars, small bills, and short tails. The breast of this species is distinctive, washed with a strong orange-buff color.
Their preferred breeding habitat is scrub and open woodlands.   They usually make a cup nest in the forks of trees.  Females usually lay two eggs at a time.
The range of the buff-breasted flycatcher extends from extreme southeastern Arizona in the United States through Mexico to southern Honduras.
These birds are partial migrants, retreating from their northern breeding areas in the United States and northern Mexico for the winter.
To feed, they often wait on an open perch of a shrub or low branch of a tree and fly out to catch insects in flight. They also sometimes pick insects from foliage while hovering.
The song is an alternating versed  PIdew, piDEW.  The call is a loud dry pit.


The least flycatcher (Empidonax minimus) (also called chebec, or chebecker, after the sound it makes) is a small insect-eating bird. It is the smallest Empidonax flycatcher in eastern North America.


The closest relative to the least flycatcher was long thought to be the Hammond's flycatcher based on similarities in their songs and appearances. However, mitochondrial DNA analysis has revealed that the least flycatcher diverges significantly from its congeners and does not possess any sister taxa.


The least flycatcher is hard to distinguish from the other birds of its genus. The bird is one of the smallest of the genus Empidonax, measuring 12 to 14 cm in height with a wingspan of 19 to 22 cm and weighing approximately 10.3 g. Its plumage is dull olive-gray on its back and whitish on its belly, notably brighter than the other Empidonax birds. The least flycatcher's wings are lined with two white bars, and white rings contour its eyes. Its beak is short and the lower mandible is yellowish. The juveniles look similar to the adults except that their wing bars are slightly darker, with tawny/olive hues. Because other flycatchers also have those field marks, the best way to identify the least flycatcher is by its call and habitat.


The least flycatcher inhabits the Eastern Rockies of Canada, and the Central-North and Northeastern United-States. During winter, they migrate to Central America and establish themselves from Mexico to Panama.
The least flycatcher lives in aspen clusters, orchards, shade trees and open woods. They breed in deciduous or mixed forests and occasionally in coniferous groves. They tend to prefer breeding sites near clearing or edges but can also nest in dry woods. They spend the winter in Central America where they nest in forest edges and second growth.
The least flycatcher also made its way in the open country. They often live in villages or city parks, nesting in shade trees and orchards, or along rural roads and forest edges.


The vocalization of the least flycatcher is often characterized as being dry and sounding like a piercing «che-bec» pushed with strength, the second syllable being louder than the first. During the hottest days of the summer, they often call incessantly.
Singing is essential to the least flycatcher to establish and defend their territory. While the female remains quietly in the nest, the male sings from several perches some distance away from the nest, and a few kilometers above the level of the nest. From there, he sings the Che-bec repeatedly and rapidly during the morning (about 60 times per minute), losing some speed and regularity throughout the day. All of the males in a same area seem to sing in unison. This singing fervor gradually decreases throughout the summer, as the breeding cycle reaches an end.
The female sings rarely. She instead uses a call-note that Macqueen (1950) describes as sounding like «Chweep». She sometimes calls while feeding her nestling, or to her partner when he leaves and returns to the nest. She also uses her chweep-note in outbursts when defending her nest.


The least flycatcher, as its name indicates, feeds on flies but includes many other items in its diet. They mainly eat insects such as many small wasps, winged ants, beetles, caterpillars, midges, a few true bugs, grasshoppers, spiders and other small invertebrates. They also occasionally eat berries.
To forage, the least flycatcher mainly catches its insects mid-air, but they also catch some insects from the vegetation. When foraging, the bird watches from a perch and flies out to catch the insects that pass by. The Least flycatcher is considered a slow searcher in comparison to other birds, switching perch around 10 times/minute and frequently turning around on its perch to get a 360° view. Least flycatchers rarely glean but hover extensively in comparison to its congeners. Those perches are mainly dead twigs of the bottom part of a tree located in opened patches of the forest. In short, Robinson and Holmes (1982) determined that the least flycatcher attacks 81.1% of their preys by hovering, 9.6% by hawking, 6.2% by flush-chasing and 3.1% by gleaning.


The least flycatcher breeds in spring in close quarters with other pairs of its species. The proximity of neighbors even appears to be more important than habitat quality when the bird is selecting its breeding site. The advantage that could explain such a behavior remains unclear and has been the subject of many studies. Some of the hypothesis the scholars explored include: clustering to take advantage of heterogeneous resources, to deter predators, or to keep away other species with similar resource requirements.
The courtship behavior of the least flycatcher remains largely unknown but it is thought to involve the male chasing the female through trees. The males are aggressive and sing incessantly until pairs form. Once pairs form, the female starts building their nest on either the forks of small trees like maples, birches, or ashes, or on the top of a large branch. The average height of the nest is 12 to 25 inches above the ground, but can vary from 2 to 65 inches depending on the habitat. The female builds the nest by weaving fine pieces of grass, strips of bark, twigs, lichen, spider and caterpillar webs, animal hairs and feathers, and other plant-derived materials together to form a tidy cup, a process that takes her about five days.
The female least flycatcher typically lays three to five creamy-white colored eggs, with a strong tendency towards four. The female incubates the eggs for a period of 13 to 16 days while the male remains in the area and occasionally feeds her. The eggs hatch together in June over a period of one to three days. Once the eggs hatch, both parents bring food to their newborns. The nestlings fly for the first time at the age of 12 to 17 days. They typically remain being fed by their parents for another 2 to 3 weeks.


The couple spends most of its time in their chosen breeding site. Their average defended territory size is 0.18 acres (8036.8 feet square), with an average distance between congener's nests of 175 feet. Both parents become particularly aggressive and territorial to both intra- and heterospecific intruders. If another least flycatcher intrudes their territory, the resident male quickly reacts, uttering a sharp note and adopting a threat-display. In its threat-display, the male attempts to look bigger by “fluffing out its breast feathers, raising its chest, extending, vibrating and bending the wings, spreading and flicking the tail up and down, and crouching”. This display lasts only a second or two before the male flies off to chase the trespasser away. If the intruder is too persistent, the resident male engages in a fight and usually wins.
Females can also engage in territorial defenses in certain occasions. If the trespasser comes in a radius of about 20 feet surrounding her nest, the female reacts. If her partner is absent, she flies off to chase the intruder and attacks if necessary. She can also work in tandem with her partner to defend their territory in scenarios where there are more than one intruder at a time. In that case, they both cooperate and chase them away, although the male is always first to react.


Least flycatchers’ age and sex groups migrate at different intervals. In Fall, adult males leave the breeding ground first, followed by adult females about a week later. The younger ones only join the rest of the group a month later. Fall migration occurs in July and early August, peaking in late-August.
In the Fall migration, it has been reported that populations living in the west first migrate east before heading south. From the East, they then fly down to the Tropics. A few of them establish themselves for the winter in southern Florida, but most of them choose to spend their winter on the coasts of Central America. Once in that region, they inhabit wooded ravines of the Pacific slope or the dense bushes and wooded edges habitats of the Caribbean side.
The least flycatcher leaves its wintering ground relatively early in comparison to other birds, arriving back north in late April to mid-May. It is thought that they can afford to arrive so early because they can subsist on small-sized insects which are out early in spring. They might also arrive early because of their highly competitive breeding site selection – a product of their habit to breed in clustered distribution.
The least flycatcher spends its breeding season in southern Yukon to central Quebec and Maritime Provinces, in Wyoming Indiana, New Jersey and in the mountains of North Carolina. The breeding season only last about 64 days, after which they return south in the Tropics.
The adult least flycatcher molts after migrating to its wintering ground, which differs from most other passerines. The juveniles, on the other hand, molt prior and throughout their Fall migration. The reason why the molt of the adults is delayed remains unclear, but might be due to the highly competitive site selection of winter habitat, where the first to arrive are the first to be served.


The Cordilleran flycatcher (Empidonax occidentalis) is a small insect-eating bird. It is a small Empidonax flycatcher, with typical length ranging from 13 to 17 cm.
Adults have olive-gray upperparts, darker on the wings and tail, with yellowish underparts; they have a conspicuous teardrop-shaped white eye ring, white wing bars, a small bill and a short tail.  Many species of this genus look closely alike.  The best ways to distinguish species are by voice, by breeding habitat, and by range.  This bird is virtually identical to the Pacific-slope flycatcher. These two species were formerly considered a single species known as western flycatcher. The species were split by the American Ornithologists’ Union in 1989.  The Pacific-slope flycatcher is a breeding bird of the Pacific Coast forests and mountain ranges from California to Alaska; the Cordilleran is a breeding bird of the Rocky Mountains.  They have different songs and calls.
Cordilleran flycatchers' preferred breeding habitat is  pine-oak or coniferous forest, usually near running water. They make a cup nest on a fork in a tree, usually low in a horizontal branch.  Females usually lay two to five eggs.
These birds migrate to Mexico for the winter, where the Mexican central-southern birds are resident. The non-resident birds are on the western coast from Jalisco northwards, and then to inland regions, in a corridor strip on the western flank of the Sierra Madre Occidental.
The Cordilleran flycatcher waits on an open perch of a shrub or low branch of a tree and flies out to catch insects in flight (hawking), and also sometimes picks insects from foliage while hovering (gleaning).
The song includes notes represented as pseet, ptsick, seet usually sung rapidly together. The ptsick or ptik note has the first syllable higher-pitched than the second—the only difference from the Pacific-slope flycatcher's song (Sibley 2000).  The male's typical position call is a loud and distinctive pit pete or tse-seet, but some give a "rising tsweep" or a "slurred tseeweep, like the calls of Pacific-slope flycatchers (Sibley 2000).


The willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii) is a small insect-eating, neotropical migrant bird of the tyrant flycatcher family. There are four subspecies of the willow flycatcher currently recognized, all of which breed in North America (including three subspecies that breed in California). Empidonax flycatchers are almost impossible to tell apart in the field so biologists use their songs to distinguish between them. The binomial commemorates the Scottish zoologist Thomas Stewart Traill.


Adults have brown-olive upperparts, darker on the wings and tail, with whitish underparts; they have an indistinct white eye ring, white wing bars and a small bill. The breast is washed with olive-gray. The upper part of the bill is gray; the lower part is orangish. At one time, this bird and the alder flycatcher (Empidonax alnorum) were considered to be a single species, Traill's flycatcher. The willow and alder flycatchers were considered the same species until the 1970s. Their song is the only reliable method to tell them apart in the field .
Their breeding habitat is deciduous thickets, especially willows and often near water, across the United States and southern Canada. They make a cup nest in a vertical fork in a shrub or tree.
These neotropical birds migrate to Mexico and Central America, and in small numbers as far south as Ecuador in South America, often selecting winter habitat near water. Willow flycatchers travel approximately 1,500–8,000 km (930–4,970 mi) each way between wintering and breeding areas.
They wait on a perch near the top of a shrub and fly out to catch insects in flight, also sometimes picking insects from foliage while hovering. They may eat some berries.
This bird's song is a sneezed fitz-bew. The call is a dry whit.
This bird competes for habitat with the alder flycatcher where their ranges overlap.


Willow flycatcher feed on insects, and common hoverflies Syritta pipiens have been found in their fecal samples.


The subspecies are best distinguished from each other by their songs. In addition, the four subspecies have significant genetic differences based on mitochondrial DNA analysis. Their winter ranges have been elucidated using mitochondrial DNA genetic studies of 172 birds sampled in winter combined with plumage coloration and morphological differences.
The four subspecies of the willow flycatcher are:


The little willow flycatcher (E.t. brewsteri) is the Pacific slope subspecies of the willow flycatcher. Described by Oberholser in 1918, it breeds in California from Tulare County north along the western side of the Sierra Nevada, and in Oregon and Washington west of the Cascade range.


The Great Basin/Northern Rockies subspecies of the willow flycatcher (E. t. adastus) breeds in California east of the Sierra/Cascade axis, from the Oregon border into Modoc County and possibly into northern Inyo County. Populations at high elevation just east of the Sierra Nevada crest but south of Modoc County are assumed to be E. t. brewsteri. There has been very little study of E. t. adastus in California. It was described by Oberholser in 1932.


The southwestern willow flycatcher (E. t. extimus) is a federally endangered subspecies and it is known to be found in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah. It was listed in 1995, at which time it was known to breed at only about 75 sites in riparian areas throughout the American southwest. The known breeding population was estimated at between 300 and 500 pairs. Breeding occurs from near sea level on the Santa Margarita River to 800 m (2,640 ft) at the South Fork Kern River and 910 m (3,000 ft) at upper San Luis Rey River in California and to over 2,600 m (8,530 ft) in Arizona, southwestern Colorado, and north-central New Mexico.
The largest remaining population in California is on the South Fork Kern River, Kern County. In southern California, this subspecies breeds on the San Luis Rey River, at Camp Pendleton, the Santa Margarita River and Pilgrim, De Luz, French, and Las Flores creeks; as well as on the Santa Ynez River. In 1996, breeding was confirmed along the Arizona side of the lower Colorado River at Lake Mead Delta and at Topock Marsh. Examination of museum specimens of 578 migrating and wintering E. t. extimus indicating that Guatemala to Costa Rica constitutes the main winter range. This species is experiencing population declines throughout the Southwest due to habitat loss/alteration and invasive species.
Saltcedar (Tamarix ramosissima) is an invasive species found throughout the Southwest and has replaced essential vegetation, by outcompeting native species, in riparian areas where the Southwest Willow flycatcher is found, which could be a contributing factor in this species decline. In two sites, one in Arizona and the other in New Mexico, native trees were able to replace patches of tamarix and populations of willow flycatchers increased. It was documented that in these sites 90% of the willow flycatcher's nests were found in native vegetation, only 10% were in mixed vegetation (native species and Saltcedar) and few were in areas dominated by Saltcedar. However, it's important to note that because willow flycatchers can and do breed, in some locations, within Saltcedar habitat it can serve as vital habitat in the recovery of this species.
The San Pedro River Preserve was purchased by the Nature Conservancy to preserve habitat for this subspecies. North American beavers (Castor canadensis) are thought to play a critical role in widening riparian width, openings in dense vegetation, and retention of surface water through the willow flycatcher breeding season. This subspecies was described by A.R. Phillips in 1948.


The eastern nominate subspecies of the willow flycatcher (E. t. traillii) was described by Audubon in 1828. It breeds from the eastern coast of the United States to the western Rocky Mountains.


The Acadian flycatcher (Empidonax virescens) is a small insect-eating bird of the tyrant flycatcher family.


Adults have olive upperparts, darker on the wings and tail, with whitish underparts; they have a white eye ring, white wing bars and a wide bill. The breast is washed with olive. The upper part of the bill is dark; the lower part is yellowish. This bird's song is an explosive peet-sa. The call is a soft peet. They also have a call similar to that of the northern flicker A unique two-note song described as "ka-zeep", and its location in its preferred habitat, are two features that help to identify this species.
Measurements:
Length: 5.5-5.9 in (14-15 cm)
Weight: 0.4-0.5 oz (11.1-13.9 g)
Wingspan: 8.7-9.1 in (22-23 cm)


The 15 species of this genus were once all thought to be a single species, which was discovered in Acadia in present-day Nova Scotia. Differences in range, voice, and habitat eventually identified them as separate species. The present-day "Acadian flycatcher" is not found in Acadia.


Its breeding habitat is deciduous forests, often near water, across the eastern United States and southwestern Ontario. These birds migrate through eastern Mexico and the Caribbean to southern Central America and the very northwest of South America in Colombia, western Venezuela, and Ecuador.
The numbers of these birds have declined somewhat in the southern parts of their range. Brown-headed cowbirds lay eggs in the nests of these birds in some areas. However, only 16% of cowbird young in Acadian flycatcher nests fledge successfully.
They wait on a perch in the middle of a tree and fly out to catch insects in flight (hawking), also sometimes picking insects from foliage while hovering (gleaning). They may eat some berries and seeds.
They make a loose cup nest in a horizontal fork in a tree or shrub.
The Acadian flycatcher is an excellent flier; it is extremely maneuverable, can hover, and can even fly backward.  Curiously, there is no scientific information on hopping or walking by this bird.
As of October 2015 there have been 2 records of Acadian flycatcher in Europe, the first being a bird found dead in Iceland in 1967, and the second a bird found on the beach at Dungeness in Kent, England in September 2015, the latter's identity being established by DNA from its droppings.


The double-striped bluet (Enallagma basidens) is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. This species grows to lengths 21–28 mm. Its common name from the peculiar black shoulder stripe, which is divided in two by a thin blue stripe. This is the key identification characteristic; no other damselfly has a shoulder stripe that looks like this one.
Mature males have an abdomen that alternates black and blue. The final segment of the abdomen is blue below and black above, while segments 8 and 9 are all blue. Females and immatures are tan to olive or brown, but like the mature males they have the divided shoulder stripe.
These damselflies are most typically found alongside lakes and ponds, but are occasionally found next to slow-moving streams, too.


The tule bluet (Enallagma carunculatum) is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae found in North America, from northern Mexico to southern Canada.


The damselfly has a blue and black abdomen, usually with more black than blue. The black humeral stripes are about a half the width of the blue antehumerals. The tule bluet postocular spots are small and triangular; they are separated by a thin occipital bar.


The tule bluet is found throughout the United States, except for the southeastern quarter and many portions of southern Canada.


The following is the list of habitats of the tule bluet.
rivers
lakes
ponds
marshes
bogs
They occur where there are bulrushes around.


Nymphs: nymphs eat a large variety of aquatic insects, they include mosquito larvae, mayfly larvae, and other aquatic insect larvae.
Adults: adult tule bluet feed on a wide variety small flying insects, mayflies, flies, small moths, and mosquitoes. They sometimes pick up small insects from plants like aphids.


The tule bluet is found almost always where there are extensive stands of tules. This is how this bluet gets its common name. The damselfly will emerge from relatively deep water if there are bulrushes nearby. The tule bluet can be also found in alkaline or salty water.


The populations of the tule bluet are widespeard, abundant, and secure.


The familiar bluet (Enallagma civile) is a damselfly of the family Coenagrionidae, native to much of the United States and southern Canada.


Enallagma divagans, the turquoise bluet, is a species of narrow-winged damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. It is endemic to the United States.
The IUCN conservation status of Enallagma divagans is "least concern", with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The population is stable.


Enallagma durum, the big bluet, is a species of narrow-winged damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. It is found in northern Mexico and southern and eastern United States.
The IUCN conservation status of Enallagma durum is "least concern", with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The
population is stable.


The marsh bluet (Enallagma ebrium) is a damselfly species in the family Coenagrionidae.


Adult – Male marsh bluets have a blue thorax with a broad black stripe above and has two black shoulder stripes. Its slender abdomen is mostly blue with black marks along the top and with a black tip. The large eyes are dark blue-black with small, tear-shaped postocular spots. The thorax of the female is similar to the male only its tan or blue-green and black instead of blue and black. Its abdomen is mostly black above and tan or blue-green below. Its large eyes are brown and yellowish.
Naiad – The naiad is small about 16 to 20 mm (0.63 to 0.79 in) in length. It has the typical slender shape of an immature damselfly. The naiad is light to dark brown in color.


Marsh bluets are usually found near lowland lakes, ponds, and marshes, and has a definite preference for alkaline waters.


Marsh bluets perch occasionally on vegetation in the area with the wings together. Their flight pattern is slow. They dart in and out of emergent vegetation.


Marsh bluets are very common at alkaline marshes in mid-summer.


Males set up territories at choice breeding sites. After males and females mate, the female oviposits, or lays her eggs, either singly or in tandem with the male. They will descend as much as a foot under the water to oviposit in aquatic vegetation.


The marsh bluet looks similar to the Hagen's bluet and the familiar bluet.


The stream bluet (Enallagma exsulans) is a species of American bluet damselflies in the family Coenagrionidae. Its length is 29–37 mm. Many bluet species prefer ponds and lakes; the stream bluet as its name implies is most at home along moving waters. It can be found along small to medium-sized rivers. It is occasionally found at lakes too. In many species of damselflies the males have a blue tip to the abdomen. Enallagma exsulans is one of those less common cases where the female, too, has a blue abdominal tip. Summertime is the best time to look for stream bluets.


United States: (Alabama • Arkansas • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Iowa • Illinois • Indiana • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Massachusetts • Maryland • Maine • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Nebraska • North Carolina • New Hampshire • New Jersey • Ohio • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • Tennessee • Texas • Vermont • Wisconsin • West Virginia)
Canada: (Manitoba • New Brunswick • Ontario • Quebec)


Stream bluets look similar to turquoise bluets.


Enallagma geminatum, the skimming bluet, is a species of narrow-winged damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. It is found in North America.
The IUCN conservation status of Enallagma geminatum is "LC", least concern, with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The
population is stable.


Enallagma hageni, or Hagen's bluet, is a species of narrow-winged damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. It is found in North America.
The IUCN conservation status of Enallagma hageni is "LC", least concern, with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The
population is stable.


The orange bluet (Enallagma signatum) is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae.


This species of bluet stands out from many other bluets because of its orange color. On male orange bluets, the thorax is orange with a thick, black stipe along the back and black shoulder stripes. His abdomen is mostly black with some orange rings, orange below, and orange near the tip. His large eyes are orange on a black head; small orange postocular spots are connected across the back of the head by an orange bar. On female orange bluets, the thorax is similar looking to the male thorax only the color is dull yellow instead of orange. Her abdomen is mostly black above and dull yellow below. Her large eyes are yellow-brown with small yellow postocular spots connected by a thin, yellow bar. The female can also be one of three forms. The first remains blue throughout life, one becomes green and the third becomes orange.


This bluet is often found near streams, ponds, pools with still waters, slow moving streams, and rivers.


Mexico: Tamaulipas
United States: (Colorado • Georgia • Massachusetts • New Jersey • Ohio • Vermont)
Canada: (New Brunswick)


The orange bluet is small with an average length of 1 to 1.5 inches (25–38 mm). Its hindwing is 15–21 mm long.


Orange bluets feed on insects. Their flight pattern is slow, moving in and out of emergent vegetation.


The orange bluet may perch on rock, foliage, water lilies, other emergent vegetation, and on the bare ground along the shore with wings together.


Orange bluets are similar to cherry, burgundy, and scarlet bluets. All three bluets are red not orange. General vesper bluets are similar, but the black humeral stripe is either lacking or narrowly reduced in that species. Threadtail damselflies are orange and are found alongside the orange bluet, but they will have much longer and thinner abdomens. Their abdomens are twice as long as the length of their wings. It also looks similar to the Florida bluet which is orange in color, but males have shorter and stubbier cerci.


Orange bluet females will posture their unwillingness to mate. Females stay a distance from the water and are often not encountered except in copula or tandem. After mating, the pairs will begin laying eggs in floating vegetation or debris, with the male often accompanying his partner underwater. The female will remain underwater, ovipositing in the traditional manner for up to 20 minutes at a time.


The orange bluet has a long flight season. It is from early March to early November. This bluet is unusual in that it is most active in the late afternoon.


Enallagma vesperum, the vesper bluet, is a species of narrow-winged damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. It is found in southern Canada and central and eastern United States.
The IUCN conservation status of Enallagma vesperum is "least concern", with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The
population is stable.


Encelia actoni, also known by the common names Acton brittlebush and Acton encelia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae.
It is sometimes misspelled Encelia actonii.


The plant is native to southern California and neighboring areas of Nevada in the U.S. and Baja California in México.  It grows in various types of open habitat, including deserts, chaparral, and grasslands.
It is found in the Mojave Desert, Sonoran Deserts, Peninsular Ranges, Transverse Ranges, San Joaquin Valley, and southern Sierra Nevada.
The species was named for the community of Acton in Southern California, located in an ecotone of the Mojave Desert ecoregion and of the montane chaparral and woodlands in the San Gabriel Mountains.


Encelia actoni is a multi−branched perennial shrub, reaching 1–4 feet (0.30–1.22 m) in height. The branches are lined with oval to roughly triangular leaves a few centimeters long, that are gray-green and woolly in texture.
The inflorescence is a solitary daisylike flower head 1–2 inches (2.5–5.1 cm) in diameter, on a tall, erect peduncle. The head has a center of many yellow disc florets surrounded by up to 25 yellow ray florets. It blooms in the Spring.
The fruit is an achene about half a centimeter long, usually lacking a pappus. It reseeds well.


Encelia actoni is cultivated as an ornamental plant for drought tolerant and wildlife gardens, natural landscaping design, and habitat restoration projects. It needs sun and after the first summer, very limited to no supplemental irrigation.
It is a honey plant, supporting diverse pollinators. The plant has a low fuel load, and so has fire retardant qualities in wildfire zones.


Encelia californica is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common name California brittlebush. It is also commonly referred to as California coast sunflower and California bush sunflower.


This  shrub is native to southern California (U.S.) and northern Baja California (México). It is a member of the coastal sage plant community at the shoreline, and the chaparral and woodlands plant community on inland foothills in the Transverse and Peninsular Ranges.


Encelia californica is a bushy shrub that reaches between 50–150  cm (20-60 inches) in height. It has many thin branches covered in widely spaced green leaves which are a rounded diamond shape.
The solitary flower heads are daisy like, with 15 to 25 bright yellow ray florets 1 to 3 centimeters long around a center of protruding yellowish to purplish brown disc florets.
The fruit is an achene 5 to 7 millimeters long, with no pappus.  It blooms from February to June, and attracts butterflies, bees, and other insects.


It is a host plant for the larvae of the Bay checkerspot butterfly, a threatened species.
Encelia californica is cultivated by specialty nurseries as an ornamental plant, for use in native plant and wildlife gardens, and natural landscaping projects.  It is drought tolerant but not frost tolerant, and needs full sun.


Encelia farinosa (commonly known as brittlebush, brittlebrush, or incienso), is a common desert shrub of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It has a variety of historical uses.


Brittlebush grows up to 30 to 150 centimetres (12 to 59 inches) tall, with fragrant leaves 3–10 cm (1+1⁄4–4 in) long, ovate to deltoid, and silvery tomentose. Arranged in loose panicles above the leafy stems, the capitula are 3–3.5 cm (1+1⁄4–1+1⁄2 in) in diameter. Each has 8–18 orange-yellow ray florets, 6–15 millimetres (1⁄4–9⁄16 in) in length, and yellow or purple-brown disc florets. The fruit measures 3–6 mm (1⁄8–1⁄4 in) and no pappus is visible. During dry seasons the plant goes drought deciduous, shedding all of its foliage, relying on the water stored in its thick stems.
Encelia californica is similar, but has only one flower head per stalk.


Two varieties of E. farinosa are recognized by Flora of North America.
Encelia farinosa var. farinosa – yellow disc florets
Encelia farinosa var. phenicodonta (Blake) I.M.Johnston – purple-brown disc florets
Varieties formerly included E. f. var. radians, now regarded as a separate species E. radians Brandegee.


The common name "brittlebush" comes from the brittleness of its stems. Other names include hierba del vaso (Spanish) and cotx (Seri). Another Spanish name for it is incienso because the dried sap was burned by early Spanish missions in the New World as incense.


Encelia farinosa is common in the southwestern United States (California, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada) and northern Mexico (Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa, and Hidalgo).
It can be found in a variety of habitats from dry, gravelly slopes to open, sandy washes up to 1,000 metres (3,300 feet) above sea level. It requires a very sunny position in a deep very well-drained soil, and minimal winter frost.
It does well in cultivation often being used for border, erosion control, ground cover and massing. Recently the plant has spread dramatically in areas not natural to its distribution in large part because Caltrans has begun to use it in hydroseeding.