Boat-billed Flycatcher

Photo © by Steve G
Asa Wright Nature Centre, Trinidad, May 2006

Megarynchus pitangua

Identification

23 cm - 9"
Superficially very similar to the Great Kiskadee in size and colouration but with a totally different call. This species has less rufous on the wings and tail as well as a less prominent crownstripe. None of these characteristics stand out in the field, and the best diagnostic feature is the large wide bulky bill with a prominent convex culmen.

Distribution

Mexico through Central America and South America to Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia.

Taxonomy

The genus is frequently misspelled as Megarhynchus².

Subspecies

Six subspecies are recognized^[1]:

• M. p. tardiusculus:

• Foothills of north-western Mexico (southern Sinaloa to Nayarit)

• M. p. caniceps:

• South-western Mexico (southern Jalisco)

• M. p. mexicanus:

• Eastern Mexico (Tamaulipas) to north-western Colombia; winters to Cébaco Island (Panama)

• M. p. deserticola:

• Central Guatemala (valley of Río Negro)

• M. p. pitangua:

• Tropical northern and central South America to northern Argentina; winters to Trinidad

• M. p. chrysogaster:

• Pacific slope of western Ecuador and north-western Peru (Tumbes and northern Piura)

Habitat

Variable from mostly open areas to forest edge.

Behaviour

Diet

Boat-bills hunt large insects -- especially Cicadas, small vertebrates, spiders and fruits.

Vocalisation

Boat-billed Flycatcher with Channel-billed Toucans Listen in an external program
Recording by Andrew Whitehouse, Regua, Brazil, September 2008

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2012. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2012. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
2. SACC baseline
3. Birds of Venezuela 2nd Edition. Steven Hilty. Princeton University Press 2003
4. Birds of Northern South America.Robin Restall, Clemencia Rodner, Miguel Lentino.Yale University Press 2007.

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Boat-billed Flycatcher. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 June 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Boat-billed_Flycatcher

External Links

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