Fork-Tailed Flycatcher

Fork-Tailed Flycatcher

Tyrannus savana

Predict Sightings

About This Species

Perches conspicuously on fence wires, shrub tops and isolated trees in open grassland and savanna, sallying out to snatch insects in flight before returning to the same perch. Its extremely long, forked tail streams behind it and is unmistakable once seen. It is most visible during the breeding season and while on migration through open country.

Ethical Viewing Guidelines

  • It is not especially wary, and watching from a few metres away, a vehicle, or a path is usually fine without causing disturbance.
  • Give more space to any bird tending an active nest, and bear in mind that wild bird protection laws differ from country to country across its wide range in the Americas.
LCAvesPasseriformesTyrannidae

Seasonal Activity

302,141 sightings · 2000–2026

Citizen science records via GBIF

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Classification

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Aves
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Tyrannidae

Photo

Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons

CC-BY-SA-4.0

Occurrence data from GBIF.