262 Birds of Colorado 
Arkansas Kingbird. Tyrannus verticalis. 
A.O.U. Checklist no 447—-Colorado Records—Say 23, vol. ii., p. 60; 
Allen 72, p. 150; Aiken 72, p. 205; Henshaw 75, p. 342; Allen & 
Brewster 83, p. 195; Beckham 85, p. 143; Morrison 86, p. 153; 88, 
p. 107; 89, p. 146; Kellogg 90, p. 90; Lowe 92, p. 101; Cooke 97, 
pp. 19, 87, 163, 209; Dille 03, p. 74; Keyser 02, p. 95; Henderson 
03, p. 107; 09, p. 232; Warren 06, p. 21; 08, p. 21; 09, p. 15; 
Gilman 07, p. 154; Markman 07, p. 156; Rockwell 08, p. 165. 
Description. Head, neck all round, and breast pale grey, becoming 
whiter on the chin; a concealed patch of orange-red on the crown ; 
back washed with greenish ; wings slaty-black, tail black, below with 
the outer web of the outer tail-feathers very distinctly white ; abdomen 
and under tail-coverts canary-yellow ; four outer primaries gradually 
attenuated at tips, outermost (tenth) longer than fifth. Length 
about 8-5; wing 5-30; tail 3-75; tarsus -90; culmen -70. 
The female resembles the male, but the tips of the primaries are less 
attenuated and the crown-patch more restricted. The young are 
without the crown-patch and the yellow of the under-parts is paler. 
Distribution.—Breeding throughout the United States west of about 
the 100th meridian from southern British Columbia to northern 
Mexico, wintering in Guatemala. 
The Arkansas Flycatcher is a common summer resident in eastern 
Colorado, both in the plains and foothills. It arrives in El Paso co. 
about the 6th of May, and eggs may be looked for about a month 
later ; it leaves again for the south in September. Its range extends 
up into the mountain parks to about 8,000 feet; it has been known 
to breed in Middle Park in the middle of June, and is noted as a rare 
summer resident in Estes Park by Kellogg. In south-east Colorado 
it was met with by Warren in May, while in Gunnison co. he found it 
breeding in June, but in La Plata co., in the south-west, Gilman states 
that it is w straggler, though it is common at Coventry (Warren, 09) 
and Grand Junction (Rockwell), and was found nesting near Craig 
and Buford, in Rio Blanco co., by Warren (08) (Plate 9). 
Habits—The Arkansas Kingbird frequents open 
country, but is seldom found far from water and the 
cotton-wood trees which usually line the banks of streams 
in Colorado. It is a loud and noisy bird, even more 
so than the Kingbird, and the males are very pugnacious 
until they have paired off for the breeding season ; they 
do not seem so bold however in attacking other larger 
birds, such as hawks. The food consists almost entirely 
