Phoebe Sightings

We’ve heard from our staff and our leaders at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources that eastern phoebes have been spotted by attentive birdwatchers across the state. Have you seen a phoebe at your feeder recently?

If you want to know more, read on:

  • One of the easiest of all songs to learn, phoebes say their name, a robust, emphatic “Feebee!”
  • This is also our hardiest flycatcher, arriving very early in spring, and a few will even overwinter in mild years.
  • Eastern phoebes are intimately associated with people and their structures, as they build their nests under bridges, on building ledges, and in culverts.
  • Some birds can still be found nesting on cliff faces in the Hocking Hills region.
  • Their range is statewide, but least common in heavily agricultural western Ohio.
  • These birds live in open woodlands, clearings, forest edges; most often found near water.

Want to see these in Ohio?
Easily found in Hocking Hills Ohio State Parks and that region; a pair has nested for decades on the Howald mausoleum by the pond in Green Lawn Cemetery in Columbus.
Wherever you go to find birds, take our field guide with you: http://ow.ly/aMiV50yR56W

Dive deeper! What can our followers tell us about:
What do eastern phoebe eat? (There is a hint above!)
What is special about their beak?
What makes the Hocking Hills area so rich with wildlife diversity?