Meet the Great Kiskadee!

South Texas is as far north as these "fly catching" birds range. They are very territorial and will shout out a KIS-KA-DEE to intruders, and to alert other birds of danger. They are found in the monte areas of South Texas, as well as in back yard habitats that provide water. Their southern range is all the way to southern Brazil!

The Kiskadees are not picky eaters, as they will catch flies out of the air, peck for bugs in the leaf litter of your yard, sample an orange and gobble up the occasional lizard... all the while keeping an eye out for what is in your feeder!

The yellow tuft you see in our picture is only displayed during mating season and as a way of display when threatened.
They are hard to miss with their black and white bandit mask, copper colored wings and yellow front.