Tropical Kingbird
Tropical Kingbird
Tyrannus melancholicus
At a Glance
One of the most widespread birds of the American tropics, this species reaches the United States mainly in southern Arizona. There it is the quietest and most inconspicuous of the four kingbird species present. Beginning in the early 1990s a few Tropicals were also found in southern Texas, where they overlap with their close relative, Couch's Kingbird. Unlike most kingbirds, Tropicals are seldom found in flocks.
All bird guide text and rangemaps adapted from Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman© 1996, used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Category
Perching Birds, Tyrant Flycatchers
IUCN Status
Least Concern
Habitat
Arroyos and Canyons, Desert and Arid Habitats, Forests and Woodlands, Lakes, Ponds, and Rivers
Region
California, Florida, Northwest, Southwest, Texas
Behavior
Direct Flight, Hovering
Population
200.000.000
Range & Identification
Migration & Range Maps
Over most of its tropical range, probably a permanent resident. Those found recently in southern Texas have remained through the winter. Arizona birds strictly migratory, arriving in late spring and departing in early fall. Every fall, small numbers of young birds wander north (probably from western Mexico) along Pacific coast to California (rarely farther north), sometimes remaining through winter.
Description
8-9 1/2" (20-24 cm). Chest yellow (not gray), tail dull brown, notched at tip. Almost identical to Couch's Kingbird; best told by range or (in Texas) by sound.
Size
About the size of a Robin
Color
Black, Gray, Green, White, Yellow
Wing Shape
Rounded
Tail Shape
Forked, Notched
Songs and Calls
Twittering trills.
Call Pattern
Flat, Undulating
Call Type
Chirp/Chip, Hi, Trill
Habitat
River groves, scattered trees. Breeding habitat in Arizona is in groves of cottonwoods near water at low elevations. Farther south in the tropics, found in any kind of open or semi-open habitat, from savannahs and farms to towns and cities.
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Behavior
Eggs
3-4, sometimes 5. Creamy buff or pinkish, with blotching of brown and purple often concentrated at large end. Incubation is by female only, about 15-16 days.
Young
Both parents bring food for nestlings. Young leave the nest about 18-19 days after hatching. Apparently just 1 brood per year in United States part of range.
Feeding Behavior
From a perch on a tree, wire, fence, etc., the bird sallies out to capture insects in flight; also hovers and drops to ground for insects there.
Diet
Mostly insects. Diet is not known in detail, but feeds mostly on insects, including beetles, flies, grasshoppers, and many others. In the tropics, also eats many berries and small fruits. One Costa Rica study found that it rarely also eats small frogs.
Nesting
Both parents may chase away larger birds from vicinity of nest, but often seem to tolerate other kingbirds (Western and Cassin's) near nest tree in Arizona; 3 species of kingbirds may nest in same grove of trees. Nest: Placed on horizontal branch or in fork of tree, 6-40' above the ground, usually lower than 25'. Nest (built by female) is a shallow cup of twigs, grasses, stems, bark, plant fibers, lined with plant down, moss, other fine materials.
Conservation
Conservation Status
Numbers in United States increasing slightly. Farther south, has become much more abundant and widespread as tropical forest has been cleared and turned into open country.
Climate Threats Facing the Tropical Kingbird
Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.