Gray Kingbird Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesGray Kingbird
Large flycatcher with heavy bill. Gray above, white below, with brown wings and tail. Often shows dark mask through eye and onto cheek.
© Peter Trimble / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, November 04, 2018Large gray-brown flycatcher with big head and heavy bill, giving a bull-headed look. Tail often appears notched and does not show white at the tip.
© Carlos Sanchez / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, June 15, 2019Sits on exposed perches in open and semiopen habitats, often around humans. With small movements of the head, scans for flying insects and then flies out after them in pursuit.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryGuárico, December 27, 2012Not all videos have sound
Color pattern is distinctive: uniform gray upperparts, with dark mask through eye, and white underparts. Note heavy bill, even compared with other kingbirds. Tail lacks white edges and tip.
© Christoph Moning / Macaulay LibraryRincón, January 07, 2016Juveniles often have cinnamon to brownish margins on the wing coverts and uppertail coverts.
© Ryan Schain / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, October 24, 2016Juveniles have cinnamon to brownish margins on the wing coverts and uppertail coverts. Note also the yellowish gape at the base of the bill on this recently fledged individual.
© Eric VanderWerf / Macaulay LibraryLa Guajira, July 30, 2017Pursues flying insects on long aerial chases. In flight, note white underparts, gray upperparts, and relatively short tail lacking both white outer tail feathers and white terminal band.
© Tom Johnson / Macaulay LibraryNew Jersey, November 28, 2017Eats mostly flying insects, often caught on long aerial chases. Fairly conspicuous in open and semiopen coastal areas, mangroves, and towns.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryChrist Church, March 01, 2018Similar SpeciesScissor-tailed Flycatcher
Scissor-tailed Flycatchers usually have much longer tails than Gray Kingbirds, but young and molting individuals can have short tails. Note Scissor-tailed's smaller bill, frosty head without mask through eye, and salmon-red highlights on flanks and under wing. The normal ranges of the two species have very little overlap.
© Blake Matheson / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, December 29, 2019Similar SpeciesEastern Kingbird
Eastern Kingbirds are darker above than Gray Kingbirds, with smaller bills. Eastern Kingbirds show a white band at the tip of the tail that Gray Kingbirds lack.
© Frank Lehman / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, June 29, 2017Similar SpeciesLoggerhead Shrike
Loggerhead Shrikes are more boldly marked than Gray Kingbirds, with black wings and tail, prominent white in the wings, and a larger and more distinct black mask. Shrikes have shorter, more sharply hooked bills than kingbirds.
© Michael Smith / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, March 28, 2016Similar SpeciesLoggerhead Kingbird
Loggerhead Kingbirds are brown above, darkest on the head, whereas Gray Kingbirds are a uniform light to medium gray on the head and back. Loggerhead also shows a pale band at the tip of the tail that Gray Kingbird does not have. Loggerhead Kingbirds are widespread in the Caribbean but usually do not occur in the U.S.
© Eric Hynes / Macaulay LibraryPortland, February 24, 2018Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Tyrant Flycatchers(Order: Passeriformes, Family: Tyrannidae)
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