Western Kingbird
(Tyrannus verticalis)

Overview

Summary

© Tony Battiste
For additional photos and vocalizations, visit Dendroica. (Link opens in a new window.)

The Western Kingbird breeds in western Canada from southern British Columbia to southern Manitoba and occasionally in northwestern Ontario. Breeding Bird Survey data show little change in numbers in Canada relative to about 1970. Currently, there are no known conservation concerns for the species.

Designations

Population status

Population estimate

Distribution maps

• BirdLife International / NatureServe
• North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS): Relative Abundance and Breeding Distribution (1970-2016)

Migration strategy, occurrence

Responsibility for conservation

General nesting period in Canada

Conservation and management

This species has benefited from human activity, as its range expanded considerably with tree-planting and settlement in the prairies, and forest-clearing in the eastern part of its range (Gamble and Bergin 2012). Due to their proximity to cultivated crops, Western Kingbirds may be exposed to agricultural pesticides (Gamble and Bergin 2012). This and habitat loss to agricultural intensification and urban development may be responsible for the declines seen in the Great Basin population in contrast to other regions. However, the Western Kingbird is a relatively common species and there are no conservation concerns at the moment.

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

• conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
• stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
• management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
• other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

References

• Gamble, L.R. and T.M. Bergin. 2012. Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Gamble, L.R. and T.M. Bergin. 2012. Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)