Kingbirds

For only the third time ever recorded, a Gray Kingbird is being seen in Pennsylvania. It’s been catching insects near a grain silo in southern Lancaster County, just north of Octoraro Reservoir. One of the other two Gray Kingbirds in Pennsylvania was seen in 2004 at a Christmas tree farm in Chester County (only 14 miles away from the current bird, as the kingbird flies), and another was photographed in 2020 in Bucks County near the New Jersey border.

This kingbird had me thinking about one of my college birding adventures back in 2004. I jumped in the car with some Penn State friends early on a Tuesday morning. We drove down to Chester County and got a good look at the Gray Kingbird at the Christmas tree farm. From there, we drove west to Caledonia State Park to see a Varied Thrush, a species from western North America that had been visiting the feeders at the park’s nature center. We finished our day watching for a Snowy Owl from the side of a road in northern Franklin County. The owl was a no-show, but it was still a great day.

A different species of kingbird, the Eastern Kingbird, is a common bird in Pennsylvania between late April and early September. This time of year, Eastern Kingbirds have migrated to their winter home in the western Amazon Basin in South America. Eastern Kingbirds nest across most of eastern North America, with some getting as far west as Washington and British Columbia. Gray Kingbirds are usually found on islands in the Caribbean or in northern South America. A few nest as far north as Florida.

Kingbirds are flycatchers, and flying insects make up the majority of their diet. For that reason, you’re not likely to see one visit a bird feeder. Watch for Eastern Kingbirds next spring in grassland or farmland. They often perch on utility wires while watching for prey to capture.