Adults are a combination of both gray and yellow plumage, along with crimson feathers that are hidden until courtship or against intruders.

The increased presence of trees throughout the Great Plains during the past century due to fire suppression and tree planting facilitated the range expansion of the western kingbird,[4][5][6] as well as range expansions of many other species of birds.

Kingbirds make a sturdy cup nest in a tree or shrub, sometimes on top of a pole or other man-made structure.

Three to five white, creamy, or pinkish eggs with heavy blotches of brown, black, or lavender are laid and incubated for 12 to 14 days.

[11] These birds migrate in flocks to Florida and the Pacific coast of southern Mexico and Central America.