Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Overview

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher: Medium flycatcher with pale gray upperparts and head, white underparts and throat, salmon-pink sides and flanks, and dark brown wings with white edges. Tail is long and scissor-like, black above with white outer edges and white below with black inner edges.

Range and Habitat

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher: Breeds from eastern Colorado and Nebraska south to Texas and western Louisiana. Spends winters south of U.S.-Mexico border; a few in southern Florida. Preferred habitats include open country along roadsides and on ranches with scattered trees and bushes; often seen on fence posts and utility wires.

INTERESTING FACTS

Male Scissor-tailed Flycatchersperform a “sky dance” as part of their courtship ritual which includes acrobatics like reverse somersaults.
These birds are economically important because they consume large quantities of grasshoppers, crickets, and other insects that can be harmful to crops.
This bird nests in seven states but is exclusively the state bird of Oklahoma.
A group of scissor-tailed flycatchers has many collective nouns, including a "pinking", "snip", and "zipper" of flycatchers.

The Scissor-tailed Flycatcher has a large range estimated at 1,400,000 square kilometers. Native to North and Central America and nearby island nations, this bird prefers forest, savanna, grassland, or shrubland ecosystems, though it can live on pastureland or in urban areas. The global population of this bird is estimated at 7,900,000 individuals and does not show signs of decline that would necessitate inclusion on the IUCN Red List. For this reason, the current evaluation status of the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher is Least Concern.