Tiranno reale occidentale

Tyrannus verticalis

Pigliamosche dal ventre giallo piuttosto grande; comune e diffuso nel Nord America occidentale. Testa grigio piuttosto pallida con gola e petto biancastri debolmente contrastanti e ventre giallo limone. Cercare anche la coda nera con bordi bianchi (ma questo può essere difficile da vedere, specialmente quando usurata). Trovato in habitat aperti con arbusti alti e alberi, spesso posato in modo cospicuo su un filo telefonico o un palo di recinzione. Confrontare specialmente con il Tiranno di Cassin, che è più scuro e più contrastato sulla testa. Sverna in gran numero a sud fino alla Costa Rica, spesso riunendosi in grandi gruppi sparsi durante la migrazione.

Identificazione

Adults are a combination of both gray and yellow plumage, along with crimson feathers that are hidden until courtship or against intruders. Characteristic of kingbird species, the western kingbird is very territorial. Although the western is often misidentified as Cassin's kingbird, Couch's kingbird, or the tropical kingbird due to the yellow coloration, it can be distinguished from these other species through its black, squared tail with white edges.

Tassonomia

Nome scientifico
Tyrannus verticalis
Autorità
Say, 1822
Ordine
Passeriformi
Famiglia
Tyrannidae
Genere
Tyrannus

Areale e habitat

The breeding habitat is open areas in western North America. The increased presence of trees throughout the Great Plains during the past century due to fire suppression and tree planting facilitated the range expansion of the western kingbird, as well as range expansions of many other species of birds.

Areale riproduttivo
NA : nw, nc Canada to n Mexico
Areale non riproduttivo
sw Mexico to Costa Rica
Migrazione
Complete migrants

Comportamento

The name kingbird is derived from their "take-charge" behavior. These birds aggressively defend their territory, even against much larger birds such as hawks. They will attack humans, livestock, and pets when they think their young are in danger. Kingbirds make a sturdy cup nest in a tree or shrub, sometimes on top of a pole or other man-made structure. Three to five white, creamy, or pinkish eggs with heavy blotches of brown, black, or lavender are laid and incubated for 12 to 14 days. Due to the small size of the nest, and the chicks' rapid rate of growth, most of them are pushed out of the nest, due to overcrowding, before they are fully feathered and able to fly. <p>They wait on an open perch and fly out to catch insects such as bees, robber flies, winged ants, grasshoppers, and spiders. They are also known to eat berries, buckthorn/sumac, and poison ivy seeds.<p>These birds migrate in flocks to Florida and the Pacific coast of southern Mexico and Central America.

Conservazione

Tendenza della popolazione
declining

Foto

Distribuzione

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Tiranno reale occidentale | BirdLens