Verreaux's Batis
Batis minima
A very small and striking gray, white, and black flycatcher-like bird with a very dark crown, a yellow eye, white wingbars, and a white spot above the bill base. Sexes differ: male’s chest band is broad and black, while female’s is gray. Juvenile has a rusty-tinged breast. Pairs are rare and localized residents in secondary forest, forest edge, and plantations. Calls include a series of 5–20 thin short high-pitched “seeet” notes on the same pitch, faster and more monotonous than similar sounds of other batises. Verreaux’s Batis is smaller and has a cleaner, thinner song than West African Batis. Female Verreaux’s also has a gray rather than chestnut breast band.
Identification
The adult male has a velvety black head with a white loral spot and narrow supercilium, the head colour fades to blackish-grey on the hindcrown and is separated from the back by a white collar. The mantle and back are velvety-black with a mottled rump which has long, fluffy feathers. The wings are very black with a contrasting white wingstripe. The tail is black with white outer tail feathers. The underparts are white except for a glossy black breast band. The bill and legs are black and the eyes are golden yellow. The females is similar to the male but has a smaller loral spot and supercilium and has a narrower dark grey breast band. They are small birds measuring 9–10 cm (3.5–3.9 in) in length and weighing 8–12 g (0.28–0.42 oz).<p>The song is a series of high, evenly pitched thin short notes "pee-pee-pee-pee" which resembles a squeaky bicycle pump.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Batis minima
- Authority
- (Verreaux, J & Verreaux, É, 1855)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Platysteiridae
- Genus
- Batis
Range and habitat
This species is very similar to the West African batis Batis occulta and this somewhat masks its true distribution but the Gabon batis has been found in Gabon, the Monte Alen National Park in Equatorial Guinea, the lowland Dja area in southern Cameroon and it has recently been discovered in the Dzanga-Ndoki National Park in the extreme south of the Central African Republic.<p>The Gabon batis is found in lowland forest, normally lower than 800 m (2,600 ft). It avoids primary rainforest, other than at the forest edge, and prefers secondary forest with a dense but broken canopy and thick, low undergrowth, as well as overgrown cacao and coffee plantations. It avoids cultivated land and the vicinity of villages and other man-made habitats.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
The Gabon batis is suspected to be experiencing a reduction in range and population as a result of forest clearance and degradation, however the rate of the suspected decline has not been estimated.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Bicknell's Thrush
Catharus bicknelli
Rare and shy thrush which breeds in stunted spruce forests on mountaintops in remote areas of the Maritime Northeast. Infrequently seen during migration and tends to be more secretive than other thrushes, sticking to denser thickets within forests. Brown above with spotted breast and very faint eyering. Small bill with yellow base. Shows a reddish wash on tail and wings, duller than Hermit Thrush, but difficult to judge without excellent view. Nearly identical to Gray-cheeked Thrush, which lacks reddish wash. Voice very similar to Gray-cheeked. Song is a stuttering series of phrases with a notably wiry tone, overall descending but usually with rising final note. Call a high-pitched, piercing "pzeeer". Both song and call overlap completely with Gray-cheeked. No breeding range overlap with other thrushes, but most birds best left unidentified during migration.
Gray-bellied Wren-Babbler
Spelaeornis reptatus
Elusive brown skulker with a pale throat and gray face. Dark edges to its back and crown feathers give it a scaly-looking quality. Forages on ground and in undergrowth, almost always under heavy cover and rarely emerging into the open. Extremely similar in appearance to Pale-throated, Chin Hills, and Long-tailed wren-babblers, but no range overlap. Song is a long ascending trill with a stuttering, bubbly quality to it.
Rusty-crowned Babbler
Sterrhoptilus capitalis
A fairly small bird of lowland and foothill forest and edge, with a rufous crown and a gray back and cheek, all with whitish streaks. Also has dark wings and tail with white outer tail feathers, and off-white underparts blending to a pale orange throat. Note the slender black bill. Often joins mixed-species flocks and sometimes hangs upside down while feeding. Somewhat similar to Brown Tit-Babbler, but slightly larger, with a rufous crown and a white belly. Flocks give a jumble of squeaky chattering notes.
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