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Great Kiskadee
Pitangus sulphuratus
9.84, -83.57
Field Notes
Description:
The Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus) is a passerine bird. It is a large tyrant flycatcher; sometimes its genus Pitangus is considered monotypic, with the Lesser Kiskadee (P. lictor) separated in Philohydor.
Adult Great Kiskadees are one of the largest of the tyrant flycatchers. They can measure from 21 to 27 cm (8.3 to 11 in) in length and weigh 52 to 68 g (1.8 to 2.4 oz).
This alert and aggressive bird has a strong and maneuverable flight, which it uses to good effect when it feels annoyed by raptors. Even much larger birds are attacked by the Great Kiskadee, usually by diving down or zooming straight at them while they are in mid-air.
Habitat:
It breeds in open woodland with some tall trees, including cultivation and around human habitation, from the Lower Rio Grande Valley in southern Texas and northern Mexico south to Uruguay, but also it occurs all over Brazil (specially the central and south-southeastern regions), Paraguay and central Argentina, and on Trinidad.
Notes:
This is probably one of the birds I saw most frequently in Costa Rica. This one was spotted in Selva Verde.
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