Greater Pewee
Greater Pewee has risen sharply: up 58% on the route-weighted index since 1977.
About the Greater Pewee
The Greater Pewee (Contopus pertinax) is a North American member of the Tyrant Flycatchers (Tyrannidae). In this analysis it is grouped with the aerial insectivores.
- Size
- 4.5–9 in long (12–23 cm) — a small to medium flycatcher (typical for the family)
- Habitat
- Open airspace over fields, water and towns; nests in cavities, earthen banks or on structures.
- Diet
- Flying insects caught on the wing.
- Range
- Recorded on 12 Breeding Bird Survey routes across 2 states, most concentrated in the Sierra Madre Occidental.
- Family
- Tyrannidae · Aerial insectivores
Notable Greater Pewee Trends
No notable trend signals for Greater Pewee. See the full index history below.
Greater Pewee Population Forecast
If the recent trend holds, Greater Pewee is projected to stay roughly flat through 2029, near 0.00 (95% range 0.00–0.01). A 5-year backtest shows a typical error of ±30.1%, with 80% of held-out values landing inside the 95% band.
| Year | Projected index | 95% low | 95% high |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| 2026 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| 2027 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| 2028 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| 2029 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.01 |
Where the Greater Pewee Is Detected
BBS routes recording Greater Pewee, sized by most recent count.
Greater Pewee Population Trend by State
| Arizona | +17% | 1977 | 9 |
| New Mexico | -61% | 1997 | 3 |
Greater Pewee Population Trend by Region
Bird Conservation Regions are the ecological unit for trends.
| Sierra Madre Occidental | +9% | 1977 | 11 |
Greater Pewee Conservation Status
Our route-weighted index shows it up about 58% since 1977. Aerial insectivores have fallen sharply across the continent, a decline widely linked to dwindling insect prey.
Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22. Trend is a route-weighted relative-abundance index, not an absolute population.