Date: 12/5/25 8:44 pm From: Naresh Satyan via groups.io <naresh.satyan...> Subject: [LACoBirds] Greater Pewee in Monrovia Canyon Park
Hi all,
BreeAnn Crofts reported a Contopus flycatcher in Monrovia Canyon Park last week, and Mark and Janet Scheel refound it this morning and identified it as a Greater Pewee. I had made an attempt earlier in the week, but it is much easier to find the bird after someone has done all the hard work to find the location -- and I was able to refind it later this evening in approximately the same area as the Scheels had it.
When I had it about an hour before sunset, the bird was in the tall conifers and oaks in the Fireman's Flat picnic area in the park. This stand of trees that catches the evening sunlight after some other areas of the canyon are in shadow is probably a good spot to find the bird in the afternoon through the winter. I was hoping the bird would be vocal in the afternoon like other Contopus flycatchers and make it easier to find. That turned out to be the case, with the bird being extremely vocal, calling nonstop for minutes on end before and after sunset. I've added a couple of recordings to my eBird checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S287441889
I enjoy looking at Turkey Vultures along Sawpit wash in the afternoon, so I parked in the neighborhood and walked up a little over 1.5 miles to the Fireman's Flat picnic area, but you can instead pay the park entrance fee and drive all the way along the newly paved road to the bird (at the end of the road).
