Tropical Kingbird

Tropical Kingbird

Tyrannus melancholicus

An extremely common and widespread bird of the American tropics, the Tropical Kingbird barely reaches the United States in south Texas and southern Arizona.

Cool Facts		Photo taken from: The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America by David Allen Sibley
Although a widespread bird and a seemingly typical kingbird, the Tropical Kingbird is among the most specialized of flycatchers. It forages almost exclusively by sallying after large flying insects. The Tropical Kingbird has become a regular fall visitor to the Pacific Coast of the United States. Nearly every year a few wandering kingbirds are discovered there. Most of these are immature birds. The Tropical Kingbird aggressively defends its territory against intruders, including much larger birds such as toucans, hawks and frigatebirds. It sings a distinctive song, called the “Dawn Song,” beginning before sunrise and ending when the sun appears. During courtship displays, the male will perch and flaps his wings, sometimes lifting off from this position. A group of kingbirds are collectively known as a "coronation", "court", and "tyranny" of kingbirds.
Description
Adult Description Medium-sized songbird. Back grayish green. Underparts yellow. Head gray. Plain blackish brown tail.	Immature Description Similar to adult except red in crown is reduced and wingtip feathers lack notches.

Range Map

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Subphylum:	Vertebrata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Tyrannidae
Genus:	Tyrannus
Species:	Tyrannus melancholicus
Subspecies:	Tyrannus melancholicus despotes Tyrannus melancholicus melancholicus Tyrannus melancholicus satrapa

Sound

Song a twittery "pip-pip-pip-pip."

Identification and Information

See Anatomy of a Bird

Body

Length Range: 18-24 cm (7-9.5 in)
Weight: 37 g (1.3 oz)
Size: Small (5 - 9 in)
Color Primary: Brown, Yellow, Olive
Underparts: Yellow with olive breast.
Upperparts: Olive-gray
Back Pattern: Solid
Belly Pattern: Solid
Breast Pattern: Solid

Head

Eye Color: Dark brown.
Head Pattern: Unique pattern
Crown Color: Pale Gray
Forehead Color: Pale Gray
Nape Color: Pale Gray
Throat Color: White with gray wash.
Cere color: No Data

Flight

Flight Pattern: Weak fluttering flight with shallow wing beats.
Wingspan Range: 38-41 cm (15-16 in)
Wing Shape: Pointed-Wings
Tail Shape: Forked Tail
Tail Pattern: Solid
Upper Tail: Brown
Under Tail: Brown
Leg Color: Black

Breeding

Breeding Location: Forest
Breeding Type: Monogamous, Solitary nester
Breeding Population: Casual to accidental
Egg Color: Buff or pink with brown and purple marks
Number of Eggs: 3 - 5
Incubation Days: 15 - 16
Egg Incubator: Female
Nest Material: Twigs, grasses, stems, bark, plant fibers., Lined with moss, horsehair, and other fine materials.
Migration: Migratory
Condition at Hatching: Helpless and with sparse gray down.

Other Names

Similar Species

Tyrannus mélancolique (French)
Tirano tropical (Spanish)

Very similar to Couch's Kingbird; best separated by voice.
Cassin's Kingbird has darker gray head, back and breast; more contrasting white chin, and white tip to tail.
Western Kingbird has white outer edges to its black tail, a grayer chest, and a smaller bill.

Conservation Status

Lives well with people. Range has expanded with human-induced changes in landscape.

Habitat

Sources used to Construct this Page:

Open country with scattered trees, urban areas, mangrove forests, cactus forests.

Stouffer, P. C., and R. T. Chesser. 1998. Tropical Kingbird (Tyrannus melancholicus). In The Birds of North America, No. 358 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.

Food

Flying insects, some fruit.

Behavior

Aerial hawking from elevated perch.

Adult Sexes Similar

Additional Photos & Video

Adult Sexes Similar

Videos

Adult Description

Immature Description