Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Tyrannus forficatus

Scissor-tailed flycatchers are common throughout Texas but seem to be more prevalent in areas with open fields and meadows.  This male was photographed at Lyndon B. Johnson State Park in an open field. If you look closely, you will see a small bug that was able to go unnoticed as the flycatcher looked the other way.  They are often seen sitting on barbed-wire fences, fence posts or powerlines waiting on an opportunity to catch an insect.  These flycatchers are quite acrobatic in catching insects on the fly using their tails for balancing and maneuvering in mid-air.  I watched one male make continuous catches of grasshoppers and then impale them on barbed-wire, presumably to eat or share later.  They are quite striking when they hover over a soon-to-be victim with their wings and forked tail outstretched.  One of my personal photo challenges is to capture an image of a flycatcher in this pose.