Bird a Day: Eastern Kingbird

Bird a day is running along smoothly so far and today I have an Eastern Kingbird for you.  These guys are really neat because of their different behaviors.  They can often be seen sparring over territory or chasing off much larger birds like crows and hawks away from their nest.  They are flycatchers and make a living doing just that, hawking insect out of the air.  They are seen in grasslands, fields and other open areas like farms or pastures. 

They are medium sized songbirds and are dark on top and white underneath.  What sets kingbirds apart from almost every other species of bird is the white terminal band on the end of the tail.  Only the waxwings have something similar but their tail bands are yellow. 

Posted in: Eastern Kingbird