Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Tyrannus forficatus

Silhouette: PhyloPic · PhyloPic

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
FamilyTyrannidae (Tyrant Flycatchers)
GenusTyrannus (Kingbirds)
SpeciesTyrannus forficatus (Scissor-tailed Flycatcher)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Death Valley National Park

7 Verified sightings at Death Valley National Park From 2019 to 2026

2,730 Verified sightings across all 34 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

The scissor-tailed flycatcher (Tyrannus forficatus), known as swallow-tailed flycatcher or scissorstail, is a long-tailed insectivorous bird of the genus Tyrannus, whose members are collectively referred to as kingbirds. It is found in North and Central America, and is Oklahoma's State Bird.

The scissor-tailed flycatcher was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the flycatchers in the genus Muscicapa and coined the binomial name Muscicapa forficata. The specific epithet is from Latin forfex, forficis meaning "a pair of scissors". Gmelin based his description on "Le moucherolle à queue fourchue du Mexique" (French: "the Mexican swallow-tailed flycatcher") that had been described in 1778 by the French polymath Comte de Buffon from a specimen from Mexico and illustrated with a hand-coloured engraving by François-Nicolas Martinet.

The scissor-tailed flycatcher is now one of 13 species placed in the kingbird genus Tyrannus that was introduced in 1799 by Bernard Germain de Lacépède. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. Within the... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Death Valley National Park

Tyrannus verticalis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Tyrannus melancholicus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Tyrannus vociferans

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Tyrannus tyrannus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Sayornis saya

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely

Sayornis nigricans

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Myiarchus cinerascens

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Pyrocephalus rubinus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Contopus sordidulus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Empidonax hammondii

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Contopus virens

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Myiarchus tuberculifer

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Palo Verde National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~30%
2	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
3	Las Baulas Marine National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
4	Santa Rosa National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
5	Point Pelee National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	~10%
6	Ostional Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
7	Masaya Volcano National Park	🇳🇮 Nicaragua	<5%
8	Rincón de la Vieja National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
9	Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
10	Cañón del Sumidero National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
11	Big Cypress National Preserve	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
12	Manuel Antonio National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
13	Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
14	Celestún Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
15	Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
16	Carara National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
17	Shenandoah National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
18	Arenal Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
19	Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
20	El Triunfo	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
21	Celaque National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	Insufficient data
22	Yosemite National Park	🇺🇸 United States	Insufficient data
23	Lago de Yojoa	🇭🇳 Honduras	Insufficient data
24	Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
25	Calakmul Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
26	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
27	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	Insufficient data
28	Marino Ballena National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
29	Corcovado National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
30	Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
31	Cahuita National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
32	Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary	🇧🇿 Belize	Insufficient data
33	Soberanía National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
34	Saguaro National Park	🇺🇸 United States	Insufficient data

← Back to Death Valley National Park

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

About the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Recent sightings of Scissor-tailed Flycatcher in Death Valley National Park

Closest Relatives at Death Valley National Park

Western Kingbird

Tropical Kingbird

Cassin's Kingbird

Eastern Kingbird

Say's Phoebe

Black Phoebe

Ash-throated Flycatcher

Vermilion Flycatcher

Western Wood-Pewee

Hammond's Flycatcher

Eastern Wood-Pewee

Dusky-capped Flycatcher

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found