Species
Gray kingbird
Tyrannus dominicensis
A pale grey kingbird of Caribbean coasts that nests in small numbers along Georgia's shore.
Photo Ryan Watson (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- About 22 to 25 cm long
- Weight
- About 40 to 50 g
- Habitat
- Coastal trees, mangroves and towns near the shore
- Diet
- Large flying insects, lizards and small fruit
- In Georgia
- A rare summer resident on the coast
- Voice
- A loud, rolling "pi-tir-ri"
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Pale grey above, white below; heavy black bill; dark mask; notched tail with no white
- Told apart from
- Eastern kingbird, which is black above with a white-tipped tail
- Where to look
- Wires and treetops on the barrier islands, May to August
Behaviour
Gray kingbirds hunt from high perches over open ground and water. They are noisy and aggressive around their nests.
Why they matter
Georgia is at the northern edge of the gray kingbird's range. Its few nesting pairs on the coast are a sign of the Caribbean influence on the state's birdlife.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Nest — A flimsy cup of twigs in a tree
Eggs — Usually three or four
Incubation — About 16 days
Chicks — Fed by both parents
Lifespan — Several years
Living around people
- Coastal trees near open ground provide nest sites.
Misconceptions
- It is a pale eastern kingbird. It is a separate species of Caribbean coasts.
Related species
Seasonal activity
When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breeding | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Active nests | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Notes | In the Caribbean | In the Caribbean | In the Caribbean | Arriving in Florida | A few arriving in Georgia | Nesting | Young fledging | Leaving | Last birds | In the Caribbean | In the Caribbean | In the Caribbean |
Where it lives
Recorded in 8 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.
If you found one
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