Fiji Streaked Fantail
Rhipidura layardi
Small, with a long, often fanned tail. Warm brown overall with a short white eyebrow and variably streaked white underparts; birds on Taveuni have minimal streaking compared to birds elsewhere in Fiji. Found in forest and forest edge, avoiding open areas. Similar to Gray Fantail, but note brown back and heavily marked chest. Song is a short, high-pitched squeaking up-and-down series. Calls include strident “chek!” and nasal scolding calls.
Taxonomy
The binomial name Rhipidura layardi was introduced in 1877 by the Italian zoologist Tommaso Salvadori as a replacement name for Rhipidura albogularis. This earlier name had been introduced by the naturalist Edgar Leopold Layard in 1875 based on a specimen collected on the island of Ovalau in the Fiji islands. The specific epithet albogulari was preoccupied as it had been used in 1831 in the combination Muscicapa (Muscylva) albogularis by the French naturalist René Lesson for the white-spotted fantail.<p>Three subspecies are recognised:
- Scientific name
- Rhipidura layardi
- Authority
- Salvadori, 1877
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Rhipiduridae
- Genus
- Rhipidura
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds

Chestnut-belted Gnateater
Conopophaga aurita
Plump, short-tailed bird of Amazonian rainforest. Both sexes have a chestnut breast. Male has a black face and throat and a bright white tuft behind the eye. Female lacks black in her plumage, and instead of a tuft she has a pale line through her face. Female is similar to female Ash-throated Gnateater but has plain, unmarked wings. Birds in central Brazil south of the Amazon are now considered a separate species, Black-breasted Gnateater; male Chestnut-belted has less black extending only to upper breast; female looks almost identical. Usually seen on a low perch in the understory and may resemble a small antpitta. Vocalizations include a rattling, metallic trill and a short, soft “chuff”.

Rusty-margined Flycatcher
Myiozetetes cayanensis
One of several medium-sized, kiskadee-like flycatchers that are bright yellow below, with bold black-and-white head pattern. Rusty-margined is one of the smaller ones, with a smaller bill than Great Kiskadee. Most similar to Social and White-ringed Flycatchers; look for combination of black cheek (not gray) and especially obvious rufous in the wings. Shorter bill than White-ringed. Voice is helpful: listen for lazy-sounding, slightly burry “wheeer” call. Found in a variety of open wooded habitats such as forest edge and second growth, often around water.

Buru Bush Warbler
Locustella disturbans
A sparrow-sized dark warbler with an often scruffy-looking, graduated tail. Has dark chestnut-brown upperparts, a whitish eyebrow, a distinct white throat, and dull grayish underparts. Formerly grouped with Buru Bush Warbler and Seram Bush Warbler under the name “Chestnut-backed Bush Warbler.” A secretive inhabitant of montane and foothill forest, often creeping around on or near the ground. Darker above and dingier below than Gray’s and Middendorff's Grasshopper-Warblers, and also has a clean-cut white throat; almost identical to Sulawesi and Seram Bush Warblers, but ranges do not overlap. Calls include a sharp metallic “chit” and a drawn-out, wavering buzzy note, “tzeeoooreee.” There is some variation in songs, which usually comprise three high-pitched buzzing notes, “tzeeee-tzeee-tzeee,” higher-pitched on the final note. Song includes a high, liquid-sounding “tzi-tzee”, as well as a longer, more repetitive “tzi-tzee, tzi-tzee, tzi-tzee.”
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