WESTERN KINGBIRD. Tyrannus verticalis Say

Field characters.—Of rather slender build; somewhat less in bulk than Robin (length 9 inches); head flat-appearing. Upper surface and breast light grayish, throat paler; belly bright yellow; wings brown; tail black, with easily-seen white margins; bill blackish. Voice: Loud, harsh, bickering calls.

Occurrence.—Summer visitant to lowland districts on west side of Sierra Nevada; commonest in Lower Sonoran Zone. Recorded at Snelling and from near Lagrange eastward to three miles east of Coulterville and to El Portal; noted in spring near Williams Butte. Casual in Yosemite Valley during early fall. Lives in dry open situations, as along roadways and about isolated trees. In pairs.

As the traveler takes his way over the level plains of the San Joaquin Valley and into the Sierran foothill belt there is constantly in evidence one of the conspicuous members of the lowland avifauna—the Western Kingbird, or Bee Martin. This bird is normally an inhabitant of open country, like that about Snelling, where it may be seen commonly along roadsides. In one instance eight were counted along a single mile of road over the rolling prairie. The bird also penetrates locally far up into the foothill belt, as at El Portal and at the McCarthy ranch on the Coulterville road near the head of Bean Creek (3200 feet). Along the roads in Bear Valley and at Mt. Bullion it was seen at an average frequency of about one pair every quarter of a mile. It was observed also at Farrington's near Mono Lake, probably as a migrant, April 26 and May 18, 1916. In Yosemite Valley one was seen on the meadow near Rocky Point on August 18, 1920 (C. W. Michael, MS), and another on El Capitan Meadows, September 2 and 3, 1917 (Mailliard, 1918, p. 18.)

Kingbirds may often be seen perched on fences or telephone wires, or in other commanding positions, where, with constantly turning heads, they watch for passing insects. When one of these insects ventures near, the waiting bird darts after it, engulfs the hapless bug with an audible click of the bill, and returns to the same or a similar perch. Kingbirds are to be seen frequently on the ground, in grassy situations, preying upon grasshoppers. As might be expected, a wide variety of insects is included in the bill of fare of this species.

A notable feature of the kingbird's behavior is its apparently quarrelsome nature. When a heron, hawk, owl, or crow appears in the vicinity, this flycatcher deems it an especial duty to launch forth and harry the larger bird. This it does by flying over the intruder, uttering intimidating cries, and pecking at the big fellow's head or back; the performance is usually so successful that the larger bird shows discomfiture and makes off with increased speed. Near Coulterville a California Jay was seen on the ground hunting food, and while there a Western Kingbird came and flew several times in pendulum-like course over the jay's head, but without seeming to bother the latter in the least.

If a person happens near a nest of this species during the breeding season he at once becomes the center of a noisy demonstration. Both parent birds, and sometimes other pairs, hover over him, with feet drawn up against the body, tail spread, and wings beating, often poising for several seconds in one position. All the while they pour forth a deafening torrent of protests. At such times the bird's red crown-patch which, under ordinary circumstances, is wholly concealed, is flashed vividly into view. Occasionally, however, one comes upon a kingbird that is quiet. At El Portal one was seen to sit on a telegraph wire for more than ten minutes without once moving or uttering a note.

The nesting season of the Western Kingbird is chiefly in May, soon after the birds have arrived from the south. An empty nest seen at Bagby, May 27, was placed 12 feet above the ground near the top of a small blue oak on the edge of a low bluff along the railroad track. Another nest, seen near Snelling, was 20 feet above the ground, also in a blue oak. The nests are constructed compactly of grasses and weed-stems and measure 5 to 6 inches across the outside and 2 to 3 inches in depth.