Thick-billed Kingbird Life History

Habitat

Thick-billed Kingbirds in Mexico occupy a range of habitats, including thorn forest, open areas within tropical dry forest, and along streams and rivers within dry scrub habitats. In their limited U.S. range, they are more restricted to woodlands along permanent streams and rivers, especially edges and clearings with large sycamores and cottonwoods.

Food

Thick-billed Kingbirds feed mainly on insects, but they also eat some fruit. Like other kingbirds, they perch atop tall bushes or trees, fly out to catch flying insects, and then often return to the same perch.

Nesting

Nest Placement

In Arizona and New Mexico, nest typically built high in tall trees and often placed in outer branches or tree crowns. Nests in cottonwoods are often built within mistletoe clumps, perhaps to provide more support.

Nest Description

A messy, loose cup built from twigs and grass stems. Nests often have a flimsy, unfinished look, with twigs and stems sticking out in all directions, and some are so thin that an observer can look through them from below.

Nesting Facts

Behavior

Thick-billed Kingbirds are loud and conspicuous. They sit atop prominent perches (sometimes in their nest tree), take flight to catch flying insects, and return to the perch on fluttering wings while calling. These flycatchers aggressively defend their nest and fledglings from predators, including hawks, ravens, jays, and even rattlesnakes.

Conservation

Partners in Flight estimates Thick-billed Kingbird’s global breeding population size at 2,000,000 individuals and rates the species a 12 out of 20 on the Continental Concern Score, indicating a species of low conservation concern.

Credits

Dunne, P. (2006). Pete Dunne's essential field guide companion. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, New York, USA.

Howell, S. N. G., and S. Webb (1995). A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and northern Central America. Oxford University Press, New York, NY, USA.

Lowther, P. E., P. Pyle, and M. A. Patten (2020). Thick-billed Kingbird (Tyrannus crassirostris), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (P. G. Rodewald, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.thbkin.01

Partners in Flight (2023). Avian Conservation Assessment Database, version 2023.

Phillips, A., J. Marshall, and G. Monson (1964). The Birds of Arizona. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA.

Sibley, D. A. (2014). The Sibley Guide to Birds, second edition. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY, USA.

Smith, A. P. (1909). Observations on some birds found in southern Mexico. Condor 11:57-64.

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