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Great Kiskadee

Pitangus sulphuratusOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Flycatchers (Tyrannidae)

Great Kiskadee Breeding Male Portrait
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General

Great Kiskadee: Large flycatcher with brown upperparts, white head with black cap and eye-line, and bright yellow underparts. Yellow crown patch is usually concealed. Wings and tail are chestnut-brown. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Great Kiskadee: Resident from extreme southern Texas (lower Rio Grande Valley) and southward. Preferred habitats include rivers, streams, and lakes bordered with dense vegetation; also found in open country and parks.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"kiss-ka-dee", "cree-ah"

Interesting Facts

 The Great Kiskadee is aggressive, and will drive away larger birds entering its territory.

 It will occasionally dive for fish in shallow water, making it one of the few fish-eating passerines.

 One of its most feared predators is the coral snake; it will stay away from anything that has the same color pattern as the snake.

 A group of kiskadees are collectively known as a "shower" of kiskadees.



Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Range Map for Great Kiskadee
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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family Flycatcher (Tyrannidae)_blue
Species Pitangus sulphuratus
Length9.5 - 10 Inches
Wingspan16 Inches

Great Kiskadee

Great Kiskadee: Large flycatcher with brown upperparts, white head with black cap and eye-line, and bright yellow underparts. Yellow crown patch is usually concealed. Wings and tail are chestnut-brown. Black bill, legs and feet. Slow fluttering direct flight with shallow wing beats.

● Song: "kiss-ka-dee", "cree-ah"

● Foraging & Feeding: Great Kiskadee: Feeds on variety of crawling and flying insects. Sallies to catch prey, often in mid-air, then returns to perch and beats the victim on the branch several times before eating. Also eats frogs, small lizards, baby birds, and mice.

● Breeding & nesting: Great Kiskadee: Two to five white eggs spotted with brown and lavender are laid in a bulky, domed nest with a side entrance made of grass, weeds, bark strips, moss, and other plant fibers, and built in a thorn tree or bush 6 to 50 feet above the ground. Incubation ranges from 13 to 15 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Great Kiskadee: None in range.

Flight Pattern

Slow fluttering direct flight with shallow wing beats.
Great Kiskadee Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Great Kiskadee: Resident from extreme southern Texas (lower Rio Grande Valley) and southward. Preferred habitats include rivers, streams, and lakes bordered with dense vegetation; also found in open country and parks.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
PopulationFairly common
MigrationNonmigratory
Weight2.1 Ounces