Tityras, becards and allies | Tityridae

Bekardes en tityra's | Titiras y cabezones

A family of tropical American suboscine songbirds numbering thirteen species in four genera in this guide, from Mexico to Panama, in forest, forest edge, plantations and semi-open country with trees. It is a composite group of varied appearance. The tityras are sturdy, large-headed birds, the males pearly white or pale grey with black, some with bare red skin around the eye and bill base; they perch conspicuously in treetops, eat mainly fruit and large insects and give dry, grunting or croaking calls. They nest in a cavity, often an old woodpecker hole. The becards are smaller, large-headed and fairly short-tailed, with a broad bill; the sexes usually differ, grey and black in the male and cinnamon in the female. They search the foliage for insects and build a large, untidy globular nest with an entrance at the side or bottom, hanging from a branch. The schiffornises and mourners are brownish, inconspicuous birds of the understory, more often heard than seen thanks to their clear, whistled songs.