 Breeding evidence |
 Relative abundance |
 Probability of observation |
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Click on plot to view table of mean abundance
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Number of squares
Long-term BBS trends
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-0.794 (-1.08 - -0.494)|
Mean abundance (number of birds detected per 5 min. point count) and percentage of squares occupied by region Bird Conservation Regions [abund. plot]
[%squares plot]
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Atlas Results
Easily spotted due to their bold nature and penchant for sitting on exposed perches, Eastern Kingbirds were observed in 1,759 squares. Ubiquitous in southern Saskatchewan, sightings declined northward in the Boreal Transition ecoregion, with scattered records as far north as the Athabasca Plain. A paddling expedition on the Gwillim and Mudjatik Rivers south of Cree Lake yielded observations in eight squares, including an occupied nest and indications of probable breeding in three squares. Mapping analysis showed that the centres of highest relative abundance were in the Mixed and Moist Mixed Grassland ecoregions.
Excerpts Adapted from the Birds of Saskatchewan:
In Saskatchewan, the Eastern Kingbird thrives alongside humans in a variety of habitats. It often uses well-exposed perches such as snags and roadside fencelines from which it hawks its flying insect prey. In addition to its usual insect fare, it consumes ripe chokecherries and saskatoon s in late summer and early fall. North America's most widespread flycatcher, it breeds from the southern Northwest Territories and southwest Newfoundland south to the Gulf coast, reaching the west coast only along the Strait of Georgia. It winters mainly in western Amazonia.
In the south, this species is primarily rural, inhabiting aspen bluff edges, shrubby riparian woods, brushy patches in native prairie, and habitats created by humans, such as shelterbelts, trees, and shrubs planted in farmyards, towns, and villages. In the forested north it frequents open areas such as wetlands, regenerating burns, and clearcuts.
The Eastern Kingbird is a fairly common summer resident north to Uranium City and Wollaston Lake, with an isolated probable nesting record at Hasbala Lake in the extreme northeast (Smith 1996).
Original text by Robert D. Wapple and Lorrie Sielski. Text adapted by Daniel J. Sawatzky
Read more about the Eastern Kingbird in the Birds of Saskatchewan here.
Recommended citation: Latremouille, L. M. 2025. Eastern Kingbird in Latremouille, L. M., S. L. Van Wilgenburg, C. B. Jardine, D. Lepage, A. R. Couturier, D. Evans, D. Iles, and K. L. Drake (eds.). 2025. The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Saskatchewan, 2017-2021. Birds Canada. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan https://sk.birdatlas.ca/accounts/speciesaccount.jsp?sp=EAKI&lang=en [09 Nov 2025]
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