Great Kiskadee
Pitangus sulphuratus
Silhouette: Kai Caspar · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyTyrannidae (Tyrant Flycatchers)
- GenusPitangus (Great Kiskadees)
- SpeciesPitangus sulphuratus (Great Kiskadee)
About the Great Kiskadee
The great kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus) is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae. It is the only member of the genus Pitangus. It breeds in open woodland with some tall trees, including cultivation and around human habitation. It is found from the extreme southern United States south to Argentina. It was introduced to Bermuda in 1957, and to Tobago in about 1970.
The great kiskadee was described and illustrated in 1648 by the German naturalist Georg Marcgrave in the Historia Naturalis Brasiliae. He used the name Pitangua-guaçu, the word for a large flycatcher in the Tupi language. In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the species in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected in Cayenne, French Guiana. He used the French name La Pie-Griesche jaune de Cayenne and the Latin name Lanius Cayanensis Luteus. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature.
When the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition in 1766 he added 240 species that had been previously... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Coiba National Park
Yellow-bellied Elaenia
Elaenia flavogaster
Tropical Kingbird
Tyrannus melancholicus
Panama Flycatcher
Myiarchus panamensis
Southern Tropical Pewee
Contopus cinereus
Common Tody-Flycatcher
Todirostrum cinereum
Streaked Flycatcher
Myiodynastes maculatus
Sepia-capped Flycatcher
Leptopogon amaurocephalus
Lesser Elaenia
Elaenia chiriquensis
Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet
Camptostoma obsoletum
Great Crested Flycatcher
Myiarchus crinitus
Greenish Elaenia
Myiopagis viridicata
Bright-rumped Attila
Attila spadiceus
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Great Kiskadee in Coiba National Park?
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Great Kiskadee sighting in Coiba National Park, based on 89 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Great Kiskadee in Coiba National Park?
August has the highest sighting rate for Great Kiskadee in Coiba National Park in our monthly data.