They consume a great number of grasshoppers, crickets, spiders, and other ground-dwelling insects making them economically important and popular with farmers and ranchers. After climbing about 100 feet in the air, the male makes a series of V-shaped flights, then plunges down in an erratic zigzag course often somersaulting while uttering a rolling, cackling call. Nesting usually takes place in an isolated tree 7-30 feet above ground. Often two broods of 4-6 each are raised during the summer. The nape of its neck and its back are pearl gray, and the breast is white.
Wings are sooty black with a touch of scarlet at the shoulders.
The principal threat to scissortails is poaching. A great number of birds have been killed by poachers who wanted only the bird's tail.