African Blue Flycatcher
Elminia longicauda
A slim, slightly crested flycatcher with a long tail that is often fanned. Uniformly blue, including the tail, with slightly paler underparts. Found in rainforest, gallery forest, lush gardens and woodland, and mangroves. Often joins mixed-species feeding flocks. Similar to White-tailed Blue Flycatcher, but has virtually no overlap in range and is easily separated by its entirely blue tail. The song is a long, complex mix of high-pitched warbling and chattering notes, and the call is a ringing “chi-wee.”
Identification
The African blue flycatcher is a dainty, pale, bright blue flycatcher with a short crest and long tail. The entire upper parts and tail are bright blue, shading between blue and cyan, with black lores and black flight feathers edged with blue, the underparts are greyish blue fading to whitish on the belly. The bill and legs are black. Juveniles are duller with faint greyish spotting on the head and wing coverts. It measures 15–18 cm (5.9–7.1 in) in length and weighs 7–12 g (0.25–0.42 oz).<p>The song of the African blue flycatcher is a series of slow, rather random and tuneless sibilant notes strung together in no particular order. Call is a quiet "tsip".
Taxonomy
The African blue flycatcher is thought to form a superspecies with the white-tailed blue flycatcher and these species ; the two have been placed in a separate genus Errannornis, but the differences between this species pair and the other species classified in Elminia are considered insufficient to merit generic separation.<p>Two subspecies of the African blue flycatcher are currently recognised. Elminia longicauda longicauda (Swainson, 1838) which is found in the western part of its range as far east as Nigeria, and the paler Elminia longicauda teresita Antinori, 1864 in the west and the south.
- Scientific name
- Elminia longicauda
- Authority
- (Swainson, 1838)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Monarchidae
- Genus
- Elminia
Range and habitat
The African blue flycatcher occurs from Mauritania, Senegal and Gambia east discontinuously to Kenya and south through the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to northern Angola. Its natural habitats are moist lowland forests, mangrove forests, gallery forest, montane forests, gardens, wooded farmland and moist savanna.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Retiring inhabitant of humid tropical lowlands. Found singly, hopping on the ground in shady rainforest and tossing leaves with its bill, in search of insects and other morsels. Most often detected when disturbed or flushed, when it gives a sharp, whistled “skweek” call. Note the long and rather slender straight bill. Plumage is dark brown overall with paler mottling (not really scaling) on the throat and breast.
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