Tropical Kingbird

Tropical Kingbird

Tyrannus melancholicus

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Torreón

In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%

85 Verified sightings at Torreón
92,094 In all 87 parks From 2019 to 2026
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Tropical Kingbird

The tropical kingbird (Tyrannus melancholicus) is a large tyrant flycatcher. This bird breeds from southern Arizona and the lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas in the United States through Central America, South America as far as south as central Argentina and eastern Peru, and on Trinidad and Tobago. Birds from the northernmost and southern breeding areas migrate to warmer parts of the range after breeding.

The tropical kingbird was formally described in 1819 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot under the binomial name Tyrannus melancholicus. Vieillot based his description on the Suirirí-Guazú that had been described by the Spanish naturalist Félix de Azara in 1805 in his book Apuntamientos para la historia natural de los páxaros del Paragüay y Rio de la Plata. The specific epithet is Latin meaning "melancholic" (that is "bad-tempered").

Three subspecies are recognised: An adult tropical kingbird is 22... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:30

Brazil · 2026

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1182995 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:39

Costa Rica · 2026

© Nick Talbot · XC1178483 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Dawn song0:25

Brazil · 2024

© Ricardo José Mitidieri · XC934499 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Masaya Volcano National Park 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
~80%
2 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
~80%
3 Main Ridge Forest Reserve 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~70%
4 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~70%
5 Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~70%
6 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~70%
7 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~70%
8 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~60%
9 Tijuca National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~60%
10 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~60%
11 Lago de Yojoa 🇭🇳 Honduras
~60%
12 Caroni Swamp 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~60%
13 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~60%
14 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~60%
15 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~60%
16 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~60%
17 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
18 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~50%
19 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
20 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
~50%
21 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~50%
22 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~50%
23 El Palmar National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~50%
24 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
25 Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~50%
26 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
27 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~50%
28 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
29 Yasuní National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~50%
30 Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~50%
31 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
~40%
32 Iberá National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~40%
33 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
34 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
35 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
36 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~40%
37 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
38 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
39 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
40 Coiba National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
41 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~40%
42 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
43 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
44 Cañón del Sumidero National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
45 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
46 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~40%
47 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
48 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~40%
49 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
50 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
51 El Impenetrable National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~40%
52 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
53 Utría National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~30%
54 Chirripó National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
55 Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~30%
56 Tikal National Park 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~30%
57 Biotopo Cerro Cahuí 🇬🇹 Guatemala
~30%
58 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~30%
59 Emas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~30%
60 Cusuco National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~30%
61 Amboró National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
~30%
62 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
63 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
64 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
65 Pico Bonito National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~20%
66 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
67 Podocarpus National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~20%
68 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
69 Tambopata National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
~20%
70 El Triunfo 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
71 Celaque National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~20%
72 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
73 Volcán Barú National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
74 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
75 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
76 Cumbres de Monterrey National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
77 Los Quetzales National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
78 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
~10%
79 Irazú Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
80 Los Nevados National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
81 Chingaza National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
82 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
83 Brownsberg Nature Park 🇸🇷 Suriname
<5%
84 La Tigra National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
85 El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
86 Olympic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
87 Big Bend National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Maracaibo 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~90%
2 Cali 🇨🇴 Colombia
~80%
3 Salvador 🇧🇷 Brazil
~80%
4 Managua 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
~80%
5 Caracas 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~80%
6 Medellín 🇨🇴 Colombia
~80%
7 San Pedro Sula 🇭🇳 Honduras
~80%
8 Guayaquil 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~80%
9 Niterói 🇧🇷 Brazil
~80%
10 San José 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~70%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 San Diego Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Tropical Kingbird in Torreón?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Tropical Kingbird sighting in Torreón on a given day, based on 85 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 20th most-seen of the 86 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Tropical Kingbird in Torreón?

August

In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Tropical Kingbird in Torreón on a given day, against about 10% in October to March, the lowest months. That is one of Torreón's wettest months, with about 45 mm of rain against 5 mm in April.

What time of day is best to see a Tropical Kingbird?

Between 2 and 5 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Tropical Kingbird sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Torreón the best place to see a Tropical Kingbird?

46th of 60

Of the 60 cities where we can rate Tropical Kingbird sightings, Torreón ranks 46th at about 20%. The best odds are in Maracaibo (Venezuela, about 90%), Cali (Colombia, about 80%) and Salvador (Brazil, about 80%).

Which relatives of the Tropical Kingbird live in Torreón?

Same genus: Tyrannus

The closest relatives of the Tropical Kingbird that you can see in Torreón (genus Tyrannus, Kingbirds) are Cassin's Kingbird (about 20%) and Western Kingbird (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Tropical Kingbird sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Tropical Kingbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Torreón (85 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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