Large Niltava
Niltava grandis
Typical niltava: male bright blue, female plain brown. Male is bright electric purplish-blue above and very dark blue below. Female is dark brown with rusty tones in the wings and an iridescent blue patch on the neck. Southeast Asian females have a pale powder-blue crown and nape. Lack of a bright white throat patch separates female from female Rufous-bellied and Fujian Niltavas. Small Niltava is similar in plumage, but much smaller and less heavyset. Male White-tailed Robin can be surprisingly similar but is proportionally smaller-headed and larger-bodied and has a wider tail with two bright white patches on it. Inhabits dense submontane forests, where it can be difficult to spot in dense foliage; often encountered making forays from a perch. Song is an ascending series of 3-4 short, highly musical whistled notes.
Identification
The large niltava (Niltava grandis) is a species of bird in the Old world flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical montane forests.
Taxonomy
The large niltava was formally described in 1842 by the English zoologist Edward Blyth based on specimens collected in Darjeeling, India. He coined the binomial name Chaïtaris grandis. The large niltava is now placed with six other niltavas in the genus Niltava that was introduced in 1837 by the English naturalist Brian Hodgson.<p>Four subspecies are recognised:
- Scientific name
- Niltava grandis
- Authority
- (Blyth, 1842)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
- Genus
- Niltava
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Serra do Mar Bristle-Tyrant
Pogonotriccus difficilis
Tiny flycatcher with a long slender tail. Differs from other tyrannulets in being mostly bright olive-green above and gray below with darkish ear patches, prominent white eyerings, and pinkish (not dark) legs. Found in the understory of dense humid montane forests between 950–2,150 m; rarely joins mixed-species flocks. The song is a series of loud harsh notes; also makes snapping noises with its bill.
Abyssinian White-eye
Zosterops abyssinicus
A small, sharp-billed warbler-like bird. Note the yellow throat, gray underparts, and narrow white spectacles around the eyes. Found in woodland, montane forest edge, mangroves, gardens, and scrub. Usually in hyperactive flocks, often joining mixed-species flocks. Similar to Heuglin’s White-eye, and some individuals are difficult to separate, but generally shows a narrower eye-ring. Most common call is a high-pitched rising rattle. Song is a quiet, chatty sequence of “chew” notes.
Caracas Tapaculo
Scytalopus caracae
A typical tapaculo, in bad light a plain and dark small bird with short tail. In good view, mostly plain dark gray with brown and slightly barred belly. Female more barred than male, and juvenile mostly brown and markedly barred. Acts like a mouse, staying near the ground in dense understory of bamboo thickets in cloud forest. Song nasal and noisy, one of the signature sounds in the mountains near Caracas; one version a series of four notes “wu-E-e-wu” and the another a faster series of 6 notes “wu-wU-e-e-wu-wu”; varied calls, the most common a descending mechanical rattle. The only tapaculo in its limited range in the Coastal Cordillera of Venezuela.
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