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 →
Recent sightings of Great Kiskadee in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve
Tropical Kingbird
Tyrannus melancholicus
Social Flycatcher
Myiozetetes similis
Yellowish Flycatcher
Empidonax flavescens
Dusky-capped Flycatcher
Myiarchus tuberculifer
Mountain Elaenia
Elaenia frantzii
Boat-billed Flycatcher
Megarynchus pitangua
Guatemalan Paltry Tyrannulet
Zimmerius vilissimus
Common Tody-Flycatcher
Todirostrum cinereum
Olive-striped Flycatcher (Olive-streaked)
Mionectes olivaceus
Eye-ringed Flatbill
Rhynchocyclus brevirostris
Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Myiodynastes luteiventris
Yellow-bellied Elaenia
Elaenia flavogaster
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 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve?
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Great Kiskadee sighting in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, based on 4,145 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Great Kiskadee in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve?
March has the highest sighting rate for Great Kiskadee in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve in our monthly data.