Masked Tityra

Tityra semifasciata

Least ConcernCommonFruitForestCavity nestMedium · 79 g

About the Masked Tityra

The masked tityra is a medium-sized passerine bird. It is found in Mexico, every Central American country, and every northern and central mainland South American country except the Guianas.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

ID tip

The masked tityra is 20 to 24 cm (7.9 to 9.4 in) long and weighs 77 to 88 g (2.7 to 3.1 oz). The species is sexually dimorphic. Adult males of the nominate subspecies T. s. semifasciata have bare rosy red skin from their bill to and around their eye. They have a black forecrown and the color wraps behind and under the red skin. The rest of their head and their upperparts are pale grayish white with a heavy pearly gray cast. Their wings are mostly black with grayish white tertials. Their tail is grayish white with a wide black band near the end. Their throat and underparts are whitish. Voice: The masked tityra has a wide variety of calls including "a distinctive buzzy, nasal, staccato, and croaking or clicking zzzu rrk or zzr zzzrt and rr-rr-rrk...a dry, nasal, and grunting or almost pig-like querp or kuert, sometimes doubled...or a longer and more rhythmic series of similar notes with two pitches, ghe-rák-gherik".

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

What the Masked Tityra sounds like

Recording: Niels Krabbe · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

Where it lives

Regular rangeRare visitor

Recorded as a rare visitor in United States, French Guiana.

When to see it

Peak activity in March · a resident species across most of its range

Easily confused with

Learn the Masked Tityra for real

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