Couch's Kingbird Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  A large bulky flycatcher with a heavy, straight bill, long wings, and a long tail.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Western Kingbird, smaller than an American Robin.

  robin-sized

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
• Color Pattern

  A yellow-breasted bird with a pale gray head, whitish throat, and gray-brown to slightly greenish upperparts. Dark bill and legs.

• Behavior

  Watches for flying insects from a perch in a tree, then flies out to capture them in midair with the bill. Also plucks insects and fruit from vegetation while hovering or perched.

• Habitat

  Nests and winters in wooded areas with plenty of edges and openings, including suburbs, wooded stream edges, taller thorn forest, fruit groves, and agricultural areas with tall trees.