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 Darién National Park
Lesser Kiskadee
Pitangus lictor
Tropical Kingbird
Tyrannus melancholicus
Streaked Flycatcher
Myiodynastes maculatus
Great Crested Flycatcher
Myiarchus crinitus
Yellow-breasted Flycatcher
Tolmomyias flaviventris
Rusty-margined Flycatcher
Myiozetetes cayanensis
Black-headed Tody-Flycatcher
Todirostrum nigriceps
Bright-rumped Attila
Attila spadiceus
Forest Elaenia
Myiopagis gaimardii
Piratic Flycatcher
Legatus leucophaius
Boat-billed Flycatcher
Megarynchus pitangua
Southern Bentbill
Oncostoma olivaceum
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 Darién National Park?
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Great Kiskadee sighting in Darién National Park, based on 792 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Great Kiskadee in Darién National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Great Kiskadee in Darién National Park in our monthly data.