| Gray Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis (Gmelin, 1788)) |
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Scientific name: Tyrannus dominicensis (Gmelin, 1788) Common name: Gray Kingbird French name: Tyran gris, Pipirite Order: Passeriformes Family: Tyrannidae Size: Body size: 23 cm; Weight: 45g; Wingspan: 37 to 41 cm. Habitat: Sea coasts, mangrove, woodlands and open areas with high trees and/or bushes. You can also find it on marsh edges and other damp areas. Food: It mainly feeds on insects, particularly on large insects, caught in trees and sometimes on the ground. It also looks for insects from a high perch and comes back there after each capture. It also occasionally feeds on lizards or berries. Nesting: The cup-shaped nest, made up of grasses, twigs and roots, is located high in a tree (about 15 metres high) on an horizontal branch. Females lay 3 to 5 eggs between April and June and will sit on the eggs. Migration: Northern populations move southwards to Central America and to the north-east of South America in winter. Geographic area: South-east part of the United States, the Caribbean, Central America and north-east part of South America. |
The Gray Kingbird has a uniform grey upper side of the body and upper side of the head. The throat, the chest and the underside of the body are white. The eye is crossed by darker stripe. The rather long and wide bill is black. It is slightly flattened and hook-tipped. The wing and tail feathers are blackish grey with thin white borders. The tail appears forked during flight. The Gray Kingbird is an aggressive bird which can attack larger birds and even humans if the nest is threatened. |
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This Gray Kingbird has come to watch the tourists who are visiting the beautiful site called Porte d'Enfer on the Grande Terre island. |
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The Gray Kingbird is not a shy bird and this one was easy to approach. On the opposite of its usual habits, this one was perched on a rather low location. |
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I have been lucky because all the other Gray Kingbirds I have observed were far and perched very high on telegraph poles or other high supports. |
André Bon February 2011