Fork-tailed Flycatcher

Tyrannus savana

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

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

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Tikal National Park

4 Verified sightings at Tikal National Park From 2019 to 2026

6,652 Verified sightings across all 64 parks From 2019 to 2026

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

About the Fork-tailed Flycatcher

The fork-tailed flycatcher (Tyrannus savana) is a passerine bird of the tyrant flycatcher family and is a member of a genus typically referred to as kingbirds. Named for the long, forked tail, particularly in males, fork-tailed flycatchers are seen in shrubland, savanna, lightly forested and grassland areas, from southern Mexico to Argentina. They are frequently observed on conspicuous perches whence they sally after insect prey. Northern populations near southern Mexico tend to be permanent residents, while fork-tailed flycatchers that live further south are migrants with a reputation for wandering as far north as New Brunswick, Canada.

The fork-tailed flycatcher was described in 1760 by Mathurin Jacques Brisson under the French name "le tyran à queue fourchue" (lit. 'the fork-tailed tyrant') and then again in 1780 by Georges-Louis Buffon under the name "le savana" (because it lived in savannahs), but it was not until 1802 that François Marie Daudin coined the binomial name Tyrannus savana. The type locality is Suriname.

Four subspecies are recognised: Tyrannus savana monachus Hartlaub, 1844 – southern Mexico to Colombia, the Guianas, and northern Brazil Tyrannus savana... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Tikal National Park

Tyrannus melancholicus

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Tyrannus couchii

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Tyrannus tyrannus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Tyrannus forficatus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Myiozetetes similis

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely

Myiarchus tuberculifer

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely

Tolmomyias sulphurescens

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely

Rhynchocyclus brevirostris

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Myiarchus tyrannulus

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

LC Endemic

Attila spadiceus

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Myiarchus crinitus

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Oncostoma cinereigulare

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Iberá National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~50%
2	Emas National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~40%
3	El Palmar National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~30%
4	Serra da Canastra National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~20%
5	Iguazú National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~20%
6	Darién National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~20%
7	Sierra de la Macarena National Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	~20%
8	Chapada Diamantina National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
9	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
10	Iguaçu National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
11	Canaima National Park	🇻🇪 Venezuela	~10%
12	San Lorenzo Protected Forest	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
13	El Impenetrable National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~10%
14	Anavilhanas National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
15	Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
16	Lago de Yojoa	🇭🇳 Honduras	~10%
17	Chapada dos Guimarães National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
18	Caroni Swamp	🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	~10%
19	Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
20	Península Valdés	🇦🇷 Argentina	<5%
21	Yasuní National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
22	Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
23	Amacayacu National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
24	Henri Pittier National Park	🇻🇪 Venezuela	<5%
25	Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
26	La Amistad International Park (Panama)	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
27	Calakmul Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
28	Itatiaia National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
29	Amboró National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	<5%
30	Chagres National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
31	Tambopata National Reserve	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
32	Los Nevados National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
33	Cordillera Azul National Park	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
34	Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary	🇧🇿 Belize	<5%
35	Soberanía National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
36	Tijuca National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
37	Celestún Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
38	Chingaza National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
39	Farallones de Cali National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
40	Corcovado National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
41	Noel Kempff Mercado National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	Insufficient data
42	Tenorio Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
43	Tierra del Fuego National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	Insufficient data
44	Nahuel Huapi National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	Insufficient data
45	Utría National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
46	Cañón del Sumidero National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
47	Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
48	Puracé National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
49	Madidi National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	Insufficient data
50	Tayrona National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
51	Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
52	Lauca National Park	🇨🇱 Chile	Insufficient data
53	Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
54	Serra dos Órgãos National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
55	Palo Verde National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
56	Marino Ballena National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
57	Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
58	Tortuguero National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
59	Bastimentos Island National Marine Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
60	Parque Natural Metropolitano	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
61	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	Insufficient data
62	Machalilla National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	Insufficient data
63	Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
64	Chirripó National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data

← Back to Tikal National Park

Fork-tailed Flycatcher

About the Fork-tailed Flycatcher

Closest Relatives at Tikal National Park

Tropical Kingbird

Couch's Kingbird

Eastern Kingbird

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Social Flycatcher

Dusky-capped Flycatcher

Yellow-olive Flycatcher

Eye-ringed Flatbill

Brown-crested Flycatcher

Bright-rumped Attila

Great Crested Flycatcher

Northern Bentbill

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found